Labour overturns 18,000 majority to win Wellingborough byelection

Gen Kitchen takes seat for party for first time since 2001 general election to temper fears after testing week

Labour has overturned a Tory majority of more than 18,000 to secure victory in the Wellingborough byelection, winning the seat for the first time since the 2001 general election.

Labour’s candidate, Gen Kitchen, won the seat with 13,844 votes, beating the Conservatives’ Helen Harrison who received 7,408 votes. This is Labour’s fifth byelection gain from the Conservatives overall in this parliament. The party also gained a Tory seat in Kingswood, dealing a double blow to an embattled Conservative party who have now lost 10 byelections in a single parliament, more than any government since the 1960s.