Daniel Zeichner 'thrilled' to win Cambridge and says his party will have ‘better plan for the city’

Daniel Zeichner said he is “thrilled” to have been re-elected as the MP for Cambridge today (July 5). The Labour candidate said if his party forms a new government that it will put together a “much better plan” for the city, and “should give people cause for hope and optimism”.

Mr Zeichner received 19,614 votes, beating the other six candidates who stood in the election. The Liberal Democrat candidate Cheney Payne came in second. Earlier in the evening Ms Payne said the campaign had been an “absolute whirlwind” since the election was called.

The Green Party candidate, Sarah Nicmanis, came in third, improving the party’s position from the 2019 general election where they came in fourth. Earlier in the evening Ms Nicmanis had said she had seen “growing support” for the party and had hoped to improve on the party’s 2019 result.

Read more: Live General Election 2024 Cambridgeshire results

Read more: Cambridge General Election 2024 results as Labour retain seat

The Conservative Party candidate, Shane Manning, came in third. He said it had been a ‘good but tough campaign’, which he said he expected heading into the election. The turnout in Cambridge was 60.4 per cent, a drop from the last general election when the city had a turnout of 67.2 per cent.

Speaking after his win, Mr Zeichner voiced his happiness not only at his win in Cambridge, but also at the emerging national picture of Labour gains. He said: “I am absolutely thrilled to be re-elected as the member of parliament for Cambridge, but looking at the results around the country it does look as if it is likely to be a Labour government and that is a very big change for me. My entire time in parliament has been in opposition, this is a real thrill, the prospect of having a government that I can support and hopefully be a part of.”

Mr Zeichner shared what he hoped a Labour government would mean for the country. He said: “I very much hope the chaos and instability that everyone has suffered from over the last few years is replaced by a period of calm and stability, because I think that would be the thing that would really help people get back on track. I have been really struck by just how hard the cost of living crisis has hit so many people. The country can be much better than this and I genuinely think Keir Starmer can lead a much better government.”

The Conservative government had set out plans to grow Cambridge, including a potential 150,000 new homes. Mr Zeichner shared his thoughts on how a Labour government would respond to planning for the city’s future. He said: “I’m delighted to say that Mr Gove has left the stage, I think he has done huge harm to our country.

“I was not impressed by his so called plan for Cambridge, there are much better plans for Cambridge and I look forward to working with lots of different people, cross party here to try and find a solution to this really key problem which is that far too many people it is almost impossible to afford to live in or around Cambridge.”

Is Mr Zeichner hoping for a cabinet position in a Labour government? He said: “Well for tonight I am just very happy to be the member of parliament for Cambridge, we will see what unfolds over the next few days, but the key thing is that it will be a different government, it is a change and it should give people cause for hope and optimism.”