The recent parliamentary by-election in Mid Bedfordshire has made history as the seat, which had been held by the Tories since 1931, was won by Labour. The by-election was necessitated by the resignation of former Conservative cabinet minister and MP Nadine Dorries. Alistair Strathern of the Labour party won the seat with a 1,192 majority, overturning Ms. Dorries’s majority of 24,664 in 2019. This win for Labour marks the largest Conservative majority overturned by the opposition party in a by-election since 1945.
Despite an overall turnout of 74% in the last general election, only 44% of voters turned out for the by-election. However, this did not deter the Labour party from also winning Tamworth in Staffordshire’s by-election on the same day. In his victory speech, Alistair Strathern commented on the history-making win, stating that residents in Mid Bedfordshire “made a decision it was time for a change,” after decades of being taken for granted, feeling left behind, and being under-represented.
Festus Akinbusoye, Bedfordshire’s police and crime commissioner, was the Conservative candidate that trailed behind Strathern in second place with 12,680 votes. Third place went to the Liberal Democrats’ Emma Holland-Lindsay, who received 9,420 votes. Finally, it’s worthy to note that the BBC provides updated news coverage for readers on their website and Breaking News services on smartphones and tablets through their app
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