Tory incumbent Andy Street has suffered a shock defeat to Labour in the West Midlands mayoral election after a partial recount was ordered.
Labour’s candidate Richard Parker beat Mr Street by just 1,508 votes to deliver a major blow to Rishi Sunak in the key electoral battleground after a hammering in the local elections.
With the race neck-and-neck in the end it came down to the results of one borough – Labour-supporting Sandwell.
“This is the most important thing I will ever do,” Mr Parker said in his acceptance speech.
Local elections live
The mayoral election results
Congratulating Mr Parker, Labour’s deputy national campaign co-ordinator Ellie Reeves posted on X: “An incredible result and significant victory.
“Right across the country people have voted for change and the message is clear…
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“It’s time for a general election and a Labour govt to get our country’s future back.”
The result will ramp back up the pressure on the prime minister, who had been hoping for a repeat of the success enjoyed by Conservative Ben Houchen who held on as the mayor of Tees Valley.
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Former Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson in the Electoral Dysfunction podcast said the rebels who want to move against Mr Sunak and change leader “would have a huge amount of fuel” if the party lost “one or other or both of Teeside and West Midlands”.
The loss in the West Midlands threatens to fuel rumblings about the leadership among some Tory MPs.
Seeking a third term in office, Mr Street had sought to distance himself from the Conservative brand during his campaign and instead ran on a personal platform.
Sky News recently revealed Mr Street was sending out election literature with an endorsement from former prime minister Boris Johnson which urged people to “forget about the government”.
His campaign website also made no mention of Mr Sunak on its homepage and was coloured in green rather than Conservative blue.
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