Labour has held its seat at the West Lancashire by-election in a blow for Rishi Sunak‘s Tory party.
In 2019 Labour held the seat with a majority of 8,336 votes – but with a 6.8% decline in vote share as the party suffered a disastrous general election defeat.
In the early hours of Friday Labour won 14,068 votes compared to 5,742 for the Conservatives, a similar majority to that of 2019.
The area’s new MP Ashley Dalton told West Lancashire residents last month she wil “spend every day fighting for you” if she won the seat.
“West Lancashire needs a strong voice to fight for the NHS we all deserve – and to stand up for us through the Conservatives’ cost-of-living crisis”.
Thursday’s vote was the final electoral test for both Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Keir Starmer before the May local elections.
Earlier this week, the newly appointed Tory Chairman Greg Hands admitted the party is bracing for a “difficult” set of results.
In the last several months amid turmoil in the Conservative ranks and a bleak economic outlook, Labour has retained a commanding lead in national polls.
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The West Lancashire vote was triggered after the resignation of the Labour MP Rosie Cooper who stepped down after 17 years.
She said she was quitting Parliament to become the Chairwoman of the Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust after a “considerable period of soul searching and reflection”.
The ex-MP alluded to the strain of being the target of the failed neo-Nazi murder plot, saying: “The events I have faced over the last few years are well documented and undoubtedly have taken their toll.”
Far-right extremist Jack Renshaw was jailed for the plot in 2020 and handed a life sentence with a minimum sentence of 20 years.
Announcing her resignation, Ms Cooper said: “There is no question I am very sad that my time in West Lancashire has come to an end.
“I will leave certain that I gave everything I had to this role which I love, and to people who have come to mean a great deal to me.”