Labour drop to poor third in Thirsk & Malton
| Thirsk & Malton | Result | 2005 |
|---|---|---|
| CONSERVATIVES | 20.167 (52.9%) | 25,702 (51.9%) |
| LIB DEMS | 8,886 (23.3%) | 9,314 (18.8%) |
| LABOUR | 5,169 (13.5%) | 11,585 (23.4%) |
| UKIP | 2,502 (6.6%) | 1,522 (3.1%) |
The Coalition takes 76% of the votes
After all the expectations that the Lib Dems could see their vote squeezed in the deferred election at Thirsk & Malton the first major electoral test since the formation of the coalition has provided good news for Clegg’s party and bad news for Labour.
Voting in this final seat from the 2010 general election had to be put back because of the death of the UKIP candidate. That person’s replacement came away with a creditable result saving his deposit.
A fifth candidate representing the old Liberal party received 1,418 votes.
My reading is that whilst the Lib Dems might be losing support at the margins because of the deal with the Tories it is gaining more from the greater visibility that the coalition is bringing them
Turnout was in excess of 50% which was well down on similar seats on May 6th but well up on a similar deferred election in 2005.
The SportingIndex handicap bet that was tipped here on Sunday proved to be the winner that it always looked. I’m a few hundred pounds better off.