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| Conservatives win Newark by-election amid UKIP challenge | Conservatives win Newark by-election amid UKIP challenge |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The Conservative Party have won the Newark by-election, retaining the seat with a majority of more than 7,000. | The Conservative Party have won the Newark by-election, retaining the seat with a majority of more than 7,000. |
| Candidate Robert Jenrick polled 17,431 votes, beating UKIP's Roger Helmer, who finished second with 10,028 votes. | Candidate Robert Jenrick polled 17,431 votes, beating UKIP's Roger Helmer, who finished second with 10,028 votes. |
| Labour's Michael Payne came third with 6,842 votes but it was a disastrous result for the Lib Dems, who were beaten into sixth place. | Labour's Michael Payne came third with 6,842 votes but it was a disastrous result for the Lib Dems, who were beaten into sixth place. |
| Candidate David Watts finished behind an Independent and the Green Party, losing his deposit in the process. | Candidate David Watts finished behind an Independent and the Green Party, losing his deposit in the process. |
| The Lib Dems' 1,004 votes represents their worst performance in a post-war English by-election. | The Lib Dems' 1,004 votes represents their worst performance in a post-war English by-election. |
| Opinion polls had suggested the Tories would hold on to what was considered a safe seat, where they had recorded a majority of 16,152 in the 2010 election. | Opinion polls had suggested the Tories would hold on to what was considered a safe seat, where they had recorded a majority of 16,152 in the 2010 election. |
| The resignation of former Conservative MP Patrick Mercer, who quit over a cash-for-questions scandal, had raised expectations in UKIP that they could cause a major upset by winning their first Westminster seat. | The resignation of former Conservative MP Patrick Mercer, who quit over a cash-for-questions scandal, had raised expectations in UKIP that they could cause a major upset by winning their first Westminster seat. |
| Newark by-election: result in full | |
| Robert Jenrick (Con) 17,431 (45.03%, -8.82%) | |
| Roger Helmer (UKIP) 10,028 (25.91%, +22.09%) | |
| Michael Payne (Lab) 6,842 (17.68%, -4.65%) | |
| Paul Baggaley (Ind) 1,891 (4.89%) | |
| David Kirwan (Green) 1,057 (2.73%) | |
| David Watts (LD) 1,004 (2.59%, -17.41%) | |
| Nick The Flying Brick (Loony) 168 (0.43%) | |
| Andy Hayes (Ind) 117 (0.30%) | |
| David Bishop (BP Elvis) 87 (0.22%) | |
| Dick Rodgers (Stop Banks) 64 (0.17%) | |
| Lee Woods (Pat Soc) 18 (0.05%) | |
| Con majority 7,403 (19.13%) | |
| 15.46% swing Con to UKIP | |
| Electorate 73,486; Turnout 38,707 (52.67%, -18.69%) | |
| But UKIP's performance on the night did not reflect their strong showing in the recent European elections and they fell well short of their ambition of taking 30% of the vote. | But UKIP's performance on the night did not reflect their strong showing in the recent European elections and they fell well short of their ambition of taking 30% of the vote. |
| They did, however, increase their share of the vote from 2010 by 22.1% and more than halved the Tories' majority. | |
| In finishing third, Labour polled 17.68% of the vote, down 4.65% from the General Election. | |
| The Conservatives campaigned hard as part of their efforts to retain the seat, with Prime Minister David Cameron visiting four times, while dozens of Conservative ministers and MPs flooded the town during the course of the short campaign. | |
| Mr Cameron's efforts paid off as the election of Mr Jenrick, a 32-year-old managing director at Christies auction house, marked the first time in 25 years the Conservatives had won a by-election whilst in power. | |
| In his victory speech, Mr Jenrick said: "I want to thank the prime minister for his personal support to my campaign and I want to thank the government for its commitment to re-building Britain. | |
| "I hope now that I can repay the faith and trust that the people of Newark have put in me as your new member of parliament - and in the months and years to come I can build a reputation as a strong and effective MP." |