CONSERVATIVE Geoffrey Cox has been re-elected as Torridge and West Devon MP as the party held onto power with its biggest majority since 1987.

The total votes for Mr Cox in the constituency was 35,904. He increased his majority by just over 2,000 votes from the 2017 General Election. Liberal Democrat’s David Chalmers came in second with 10,912 followed closely by Labour’s Siobhan Strode with 10,290. Green Party candidate Chris Jordan came fourth with 2,077 and Independent Bob Wootten received 547 votes.

The results were announced at Langtree Parish Hall near Great Torrington just before 7am this morning (Friday, December 13).

On hearing he had been re-elected, Mr Cox, who has represented the constituency for 14 years, said: ‘This is an extraordinary result today, it means that there will be a Conservative majority government.

‘I do believe that the British people have voted today to respect democracy… they certainly knew at this election what they were doing and they have voted for a party that is committed to leaving the European Union on the 31st. We will do that. We will respect democracy. We will honour the pledge we made to the British people and we will go on to tackle the priorities that we said we would tackle once we have got this Brexit done on the 31st of January.’

It was clear at 5am that the Conservatives had secured a majority government with the 326 seats they needed. With just one result still to be declared in St Ives in Cornwall, the Conservatives have 364 seats, Labour 203 seats and the Scottish National Party in third place with 59 seats. The Lib Dem were in fourth place with 11 votes. Liberal Democrats leader Jo Swinson lost her seat in the election to the Scottish National Party.

Reacting to the result in Torridge and West Devon Labour candidate Siobhan Strode said: ’It’s been an election that’s been about Brexit but it should have been about austerity and what the Tories have done over the last nine years.

‘My main role is in the community is as a town councillor and I really love my community. As a councillor I will be holding county councillors to account and I will be making sure our elected representative is working hard for our community.

David Chalmers said: ‘I am proud and pleased of the campaign and of the message I got across. I am disappointed obviously at losing great colleagues.

‘The country has decided that it wants to move on with Brexit. I will be holding Geoffrey to account and the Government as well, which I have been doing since March as chair of the European Group.

‘There is an awful lot that we do need to deal with here in this constituency and I am going to make sure that we as a party start doing more and this is a stepping stone to us going forward.

‘I have been in Tavistock and West Devon and people have been saying that they are supporting us for the first time. I have been open and honest and people have respected that.’

In 2017, the Green Party received 1,622 votes but today it took 2,077.Mr Jordan said: ‘I am grateful to bring the climate crisis to the top of the agenda. To whoever is in power I hope they progress this forward. The Government has got to get its act together and have got to lead the way on a viable route out of the climate crisis.

‘My main thing is what to do next? The Green Party has been expanding locally and I will be building on that. My grandson is 23 months old and I am doing this for him and what I am leaving him, that’s my energy. Now is the time to keep hold of the agenda of what we want to achieve.’

The overall voter turn out was 74.58% of the 80,403 eligible to vote in West Devon and Torridge constituency, up slightly on the turn out in 2017 of 74.04%.

Devon returned MPs of the same political party in 11 out of 12 seats. In Totnes the Conservatives took back the seat from the Liberal Democrats. Sarah Wollaston was elected as a Conservative in 2017 but had since defected to the Lib Dems — voters however cast their ballots in favour of Anthony Mangnall, the Conservative candidate.