Yahoo News 'The people have delivered a sobering verdict' - Rishi Sunak reacts to election
Rishi Sunak has conceded defeat in the general election during his victory speech in his constituency of Richmond and Northallerton.
His majority was slashed by nearly 14,000 votes as both Labour and Reform made gains.
This comes against the backdrop of colossal Conservative losses across the country and a landslide Labour victory.
In his speech accepting the result in Northallerton Mr Sunak accepted responsibility for the crushing loss.
He said: "On this difficult night, I’d like to express my gratitude to the people of the Richmond and Northallerton constituency for your continued support.
"The Labour Party has won this General Election, and I’ve called Sir Keir Starmer to congratulate him on his victory.
"Today, power will change hands in a peaceful and orderly manner, with goodwill on all sides. That is something that should give us all confidence in our country’s stability and future.
"The British people have delivered a sobering verdict tonight, there is much to learn… and I take responsibility for the loss.
"To the many good, hard-working Conservative candidates who lost tonight, despite their tireless efforts, their local records and delivery, and their dedication to their communities. I am sorry."
Tom Wilson came second in the contest with just over 10,000 votes. He described his mood as "ecstatic".
He said: "I'm ecstatic about the national result and hugely proud of the campaign we ran.
"We energised so many people who previously didn't feel represented in North Yorkshire, and I know the campaign team will take that energy and commitment forward to serve local people."
Mr Sunak did make it clear that he does not intend to leave the area and promised his supporters that he would be here for weeks, months and years to come.
Here is the full breakdown of the results:
IND - Jason Barnett: 27
CBP - Count Binface: 308
LD - Daniel Callaghan: 4,322
IND - Angie Campion: 33
WRK - Louise Dickens: 90
GRN - Kevin Foster: 2,058
YRK - Rio Goldhammer: 132
IND - Niko Omilana: 160
MRL - Sir Archibald Stanton: 99
CON - Rishi Sunak: 23,059
REF - Lee Taylor: 7,142
LAB - Tom Wilson: 10,874
IND - Brian Richmond: 222
Lee Taylor, the Reform candidate for the seat, repeatedly expressed throughout the night that if the election had been in October they could have won.
He said: "We won in places that we didn't have time to leaflet.
"If this election had been held in October we could have won."
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Daniel Callaghan, the Liberal Democrat candidate, explained that for his party this was about the long game.
He wants the Lib Dems to be a force in the constituency in the future.
He said: "We are playing the long game. We always have been."
