Labour gain Dartford keeping its 60-year record

Labour candidate Jim Dickson defeats Conservative opponent Gareth Johnson

Author: Grace O'HarePublished 5th Jul 2024

Dartford has kept its 60-year record for being the longest-running bellwether seat in the UK.

Constituencies where the local result has a habit of matching the overall national outcome are known as bellwethers.

Since 1964, whichever party wins Dartford has also gone on to form the government.

At this election, Labour gained Dartford from the Conservatives on a swing of 17.2 percentage points.

Jim Dickson has narrowly unseated the long-standing MP Gareth Johnson.

Mr Dickson scored 15,392 votes, ahead of Mr Johnson's 14,200.

Reform UK's Lee Stranders was third with 9,523.

Nationally, Sir Keir Starmer is the UK's next Prime Minister as Labour wins the general election

At around 5am Labour surpassed the 326 seats needed for a majority in the House of Commons, meaning they will form the next government and Keir Starmer will be our next Prime Minister.

The Tories have held 6 seats in total across Kent. They hold onto Sevenoaks, Tonbridge, Maidstone and Malling, Weald of Kent, Faversham and Mid Kent and Herne Bay & Sandwich.

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