General Election 2024: Conservatives lose West Dorset for first time in historic win for Liberal Democrats Edward Morello

Mike Taylor

5 July 2024 at 1:59 am·2-min read

The Conservatives have lost West Dorset at an election for the first time in its history after the Liberal Democrats defeated its sitting MP. Edward Morello won 26,999 votes and overturned a 14,106 majority to seal a historic win for the Lib Dems.

Chris Loder came second with 19,210 votes and condemned to one term as West Dorset MP. Labour's Donna Lumsden, who did not appear at the count, secured 3,086 votes and Green Party candidate and local councillor Kelvin Clayton gained 2,288 votes. Independent candidate Oliver Marshall Amede Chisholm secured 733 votes while Marcus Daniel Terence White of Everyone is God attracted 289 votes.

The result was announced after 6.30am on Friday morning (July 5) at Redlands Centre in Weymouth. The result was delayed after some dispute from Chris Loder over how the ballot papers were presented.

It was a rematch for Edward Morello and Chris Loder after the pair stood for their respective parties in the 2019 General Election. The result is one of the extraordinary events of this General Election, which has seen votes for the Tories collapse and key seats swing to Labour and opposing parties.

West Dorset was one of the target seats for the Liberal Democrats, with party leader Sir Ed Davey previously visiting the patch during the Local Elections. Support for the Liberal Democrats has been growing in recent months after the party gained control of Dorset Council in May.

The constituency has been Conservative since its formation in 1885 and has been largely seen as one of the safest Conservative seats in the South West. West Dorset was briefly independent when then-Conservative MP Sir Oliver Letwin lost the party whip for voting against the Government’s Brexit vote in 2019.

The full result in West Dorset is as follows:

Oliver Marshall Amede Chisholm (Independent) 733
Kelvin Clayton - (Green) 2,288
Chris Loder - (Conservative) 19,210
Donna Lumsden - (Labour) 3,086
Edward Morello - (Liberal Democrats) 26,999
Marcus Daniel Terence White - (Everyone is God) 289

West Dorset covers areas such as Dorchester, Sherborne, Bridport, Lyme Regis, Beaminster as well as multiple hamlets and villages.

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