08/05/2015

Conservatives Secure Majority Vote

The Conservatives have gained the 326 seats needed to secure a majority in the Commons, having made gains in England and Wales. In total, the party secured 331 of 650 seats. Labour is the next largest party with 232 seats, then the SNP with 56. For the Liberal Democrats, they have lost 46 seats, to leave them with just eight Westminster seats. Northern Ireland's DUP also has eight confirmed seats, while 15 seats have been secured by Others, including UKIP and Plaid Cymru.

The largest surprise of the evening was recorded in Scotland, with the SNP securing a landslide victory – winning 56 out of 59 seats. In 2010, the party held just six seats. The result means Labour, which was dominant in the country, has just one MP left in Scotland. The Liberal Democrats also lost 10 Scottish seats, with Alistair Carmichael emerging victorious in Orkney and Shetland. The other seat to hold out to the SNP sweep, was in Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale which belongs to the Conservatives. Among the SNP, Mhairi Black became the UK's youngest MP at the age of 20, after defeating former shadow foreign secretary Douglas Alexander.

Meanwhile, Ed Miliband, leader of the Labour Party, has quit and said the party now needs to "rebuild" with a new leader. Nick Clegg, Lib Dem leader, has also resigned as leader of the party despite holding onto his seat. UKIP's Nigel Farage also stepped down as the party's leader after missing out on his Westminster seat.

(JP)

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