The Conservatives were defending two parliamentary seats on Thursday and have sensationally lost both of them. The Tiverton and Honiton by-election came about due to the resignation of Neil Parish, who was found to have viewed pornography on his mobile phone in the Commons chamber. The Tories were defending a whopping 24,239 majority in the Devon constituency, but a huge swing to the Lib Dems put them top of the poll with a 6,144 majority. The Lib Dems finished third here in 2019, but Labour boosted their chances this time around by stepping back from campaigning. As a consequence, Labour finished third themselves and lost their deposit.
Tiverton and Honiton had been held by the Conservatives since its creation in 1997, the previous Tiverton constituency had been blue since 1924. This stunning defeat deals another crushing blow to Boris Johnson's leadership.
Tiverton & Honiton by-election
Richard Foord (LDem) 22,537 (53.1%) +38.6%
Helen Hurford (Con) 16,393 (38.4%) -21.8%
Liz Pole (Lab) 1,562 (3.7%) -15.8%
Gill Westcott (Grn) 1,064 (2.5%) -1.3%
Andy Foan (RefUK) 481 (1.1%) New
Ben Walker (UKIP) 241 (0.6%) -1.0
Jordan Donoghue-Morgan (Herit) 167 (0.4%) New
Frankie Rufolo (ForBr) 146 (0.3%) New
The Wakefield by-election went to Labour, as expected. Before 2019 the seat had been red since 1932, but Imran Khan took the seat in the last general election for the Tories. He stood down following his conviction for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy. His 3,358 majority was overturned by Labour's Simon Lightwood who topped the poll with a 4,925 majority - the party's largest majority in Wakefield since 2005.
It was a crowded ballot paper in Wakefield, but only three of the 15 candidates saved their deposits.
Wakefield by-election
Simon Lightwood (Lab) 13,166 (48.4%) +8.6%
Nadeem Ahmed (Con) 8,241 (30.3%) -17.0%
Akef Akbar (Ind) 2,090 (7.7%) New
David Herdson (Yorks) 1,182 (4.3%) +2.4%
Ashley Routh (Grn) 587 (2.2%) New
Chris Walsh (RefUK) 513 (1.9%) -4.2%
Jamie Needle (LDem) 508 (1.9%) -2.0%
Ashlea Simon (BritF) 311 (1.1%) New
Mick Dodgson (Freedom) 187 (0.7%) New
Sir Archibald Stanton Earl Eaton (Loony) 171 (0.6%) New
Paul Bickerdike (Christ) 144 (0.5%) New
Therese Hirst (EngDem) 135 (0.5% New
Jordan Gaskell (UKIP) 124 (0.5%) New
Christopher Jones (North) 84 (0.3%) New
Jayda Fransen (Ind) 23 (0.1%) New
There were also five council by-elections on Thursday with eight seats up for grabs. The Conservatives were defending two seats and lost them both, mirroring their parliamentary woes with defeats to Labour and the Lib Dems. In Waverley the Lib Dems were helped to victory by the absence of a Labour candidate this time - the 'progressive alliance' in action again.
Labour held two seats in south Wales, while the Lib Dems gained a seat from an independent in Shropshire. The Lib Dems also picked up three seats in Kingston-upon-Thames, an election postponed from May after one of the candidates passed away.
Bush Fair, Harlow District Council
Lab: 594 (47.1%) +2.6%
Con: 482 (38.2%) -6.5%
Grn: 109 (8.6%) +1.0%
HAP: 76 (6.0%) New
Lab GAIN from Con
New Malden Village, Kingston London Borough Council
(three seats)
LDem: 1,217
LDem: 1,184
LDem: 1,182
Grn: 867
Ind: 724
Ind: 703
Con: 467
Con: 372
Con: 327
Lab: 436
Lab: 429
Lab: 374
LDem GAIN x 3 (new ward)
Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council
(two seats)
Lab: 914
Lab: 898
Plaid: 367
Ind: 246
Plaid: 244
Ind: 171
Grn: 46
Grn: 25
Lab HOLD x 2
Highley, Shropshire Council
LDem: 630 (54.5%) New
Con: 279 (24.1%) -9.5%
Lab: 239 (20.7%) +7.3%
Grn: 9 (0.8%) New
LDem GAIN from Ind
Hindhead, Waverley Borough Council
LDem: 526 (54.6%) +7.9%
Con: 440 (45.4%) -1.2%
LDem GAIN from Con
Abbreviations
LDem = Liberal Democrat
Con = Conservative
Lab = Labour
Grn = Green
RefUK = Reform UK
UKIP = UK Independence Party
Herit = Heritage
ForBrit = For Britain
Yorks = Yorkshire
BritF = Britain First
Freedom = Freedom Alliance
Loony = Monster Raving Loony
Christ = Christian Peoples Alliance
EngDem = English Democrats
North = Northern Independence
HAP = Harlow Alliance Party
Plaid = Plaid Cymru
Ind = Independent
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