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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Conservatives win Sleaford by-election | Conservatives win Sleaford by-election |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Conservative candidate Caroline Johnson has won the Sleaford and North Hykeham by-election, which saw Labour come in fourth behind UKIP and the Liberal Democrats. | Conservative candidate Caroline Johnson has won the Sleaford and North Hykeham by-election, which saw Labour come in fourth behind UKIP and the Liberal Democrats. |
| The Tory party held onto the seat which became vacant after MP Stephen Phillips quit, citing "irreconcilable policy differences" with the government. | The Tory party held onto the seat which became vacant after MP Stephen Phillips quit, citing "irreconcilable policy differences" with the government. |
| Dr Johnson won 17,570 votes to beat UKIP's Victoria Ayling, who had 4,426. | |
| Labour slipped from second place in the 2015 general election to fourth. | Labour slipped from second place in the 2015 general election to fourth. |
| Consultant paediatrician Dr Johnson said her election to the House of Commons would boost Theresa May's majority. | |
| She said she wanted to support the prime minister so she could "get on with the job" of leaving the EU and "delivering a country and economy what works for everyone". | |
| The seat has returned Conservative MPs since it was formed in 1997 and Mr Phillips, who resigned in November, had a majority of more than 24,000 votes in 2015. | The seat has returned Conservative MPs since it was formed in 1997 and Mr Phillips, who resigned in November, had a majority of more than 24,000 votes in 2015. |
| Although he backed leaving the EU, he had since been critical of the government's approach to Brexit. | Although he backed leaving the EU, he had since been critical of the government's approach to Brexit. |
| UKIP's 'great result' | |
| UKIP had been campaigning hard in the Lincolnshire seat, an area which voted heavily to leave the EU. | |
| The party's former leader Nigel Farage and his successor Paul Nuttall had been on the campaign trail in the constituency, supporting Ms Ayling - a former Conservative who stood for the Tories in Great Grimsby in 2010. | The party's former leader Nigel Farage and his successor Paul Nuttall had been on the campaign trail in the constituency, supporting Ms Ayling - a former Conservative who stood for the Tories in Great Grimsby in 2010. |
| Ms Ayling said coming in second was a "great result" for UKIP as it showed "more people are trusting us to deliver". | |
| Mr Nuttall said the result was a "really good way to get my leadership off the ground". | |
| He added: "If someone would have offered me second place at the beginning of the campaign, considering we were in the middle of a leadership election and the party resembled a bit of a shambles over the summer, I would have bitten their hand off." | |
| The turnout for the by-election was 37.1% according to North Kesteven District Council, down from 70.2% at the general election last year. | The turnout for the by-election was 37.1% according to North Kesteven District Council, down from 70.2% at the general election last year. |