Margaret Mullane has been elected as MP for Dagenham & Rainham in the 2024 General Election.
The Labour politician made her debut in this year's parliamentary election after her predecessor Jonathan (Jon) Cruddas, announced in August 2022 that he would be retiring from the next general election (2024).
Mr Cruddas served as incumbent MP for the area since 2010, coming out on top in the 2015, 2017 and 2019 general elections.
The results were announced shortly after 4am (Image: LDRS (Ruby Gregory)) The constituency of Dagenham & Rainham was created the same year, after the lone Dagenham ward was abolished by election boundary changes.
Ms Mullane was unavailable for comment ahead of the results announcement, though Conservative rival Sam Holland told The Post they were "expecting Labour, Reform, Conservative in that order."
The Labour candidate secured 16,571 votes, with a 42.6 per cent share of the vote. It follows the 2019 election results which recorded Labour’s lowest majority in Dagenham since 1945.
Reform received the second largest number of votes in the constituency (Image: Olivia Carter) Ms Mullane's successful campaign in the constituency follows news from across the country of Labour securing seats.
Prime ministerial candidate Sir Keir Starmer held onto his seat in Holborn and St Pancras, receiving 48.9 per cent of the vote.
The success of the Labour party in Dagenham & Rainham was somewhat difficult to predict this year after constituency boundary changes were made to re-balance the number of electorates in the area.
The Labour MP thanked members of her team, family and the electorates in Dagenham & Rainham (Image: Marcia Veiga) The changes risked watering down the concentration of Labour voters in the constituency.
The Reform party have also been performing in polls across the country, posing as a threat to the two major parties typically favoured by the first-past-the-post system.
After her win was announced, Ms Mullane said: "To the people of Dagenham & Rainham, thank you.
"You have sent a clear message under Keir Starmer's leadership that Labour is back in the service of working people.Conservative candidate Sam Holland admitted things had gone wrong for the party (Image: Olivia Carter) "I promise everyone in Dagenham & Rainham here and now, as your MP I will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with working people 24-hours a day, 365 days a year. I'm in your corner".
In her winning speech, the MP made reference to promises made throughout her campaign over Beam Park Station, Launders Lane, NHS waiting lists, and the A&E in Queens Hospital.
Here are the full votes for candidates in the constituency:
- Margaret Mullane (Labour): 16,571
- Kim Arrowsmith (Green Party): 4,184
- Francesca Rose Flack (Liberal Democrats): 1,033
- Kevin Godfrey (Reform UK): 9,398
- Sam Holland (Conservatives): 6,926
- Terrence London (Independent): 755
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