Labour hails ‘stunning’ Inverclyde byelection victory

Scottish Labour party candidate Iain McKenzie wins 53% of vote despite well-resourced campaigning effort by SNP The Scottish Labour party has welcomed its “stunning” victory in the Inverclyde byelection after it held the seat by an unexpectedly convincing margin, claiming it was a triumph. Labour won the contest with a majority of 5,838, far higher than many of its MSPs and MPs had expected following an intense and heavily resourced campaign by the Scottish National party (SNP), which included repeated visits to the seat by the first minister, Alex Salmond. Iain McKenzie, the local council leader, was elected with 53% of the vote, a similar margin won at the general election by his predecessor, David Cairns, a former Labour minister whose sudden death in May prompted the byelection. The SNP’s share of the vote nearly doubled, surging to 33%, after the Liberal Democrats’ vote collapsed by more than 10 points to 2.2%, losing the party its deposit. In a result which is likely to depress the Lib Dems further after their rout at the Holyrood election, its candidate, Sophie Bridger, attracted just 627 votes. The Tories’ vote also fell by two points, to less than 10%. It was the first test for Labour and its UK leader, Ed Miliband, since the party was humiliated by the SNP’s landslide victory in the Scottish parliament elections on 5 May. Boosted by sunny weather, the turnout was higher than many had predicted, at 45%. Ann McKechin, the shadow secretary of state for Scotland, said the result was a significant blow for the SNP and Salmond, the party’s leader. The day before polling, the first minister had hoped for a victory of “earthquake proportions” in the seat, west of Glasgow. “Just 56 days since losing the Holyrood election, Labour has shown we are able to win back the trust of the electorate in Scotland,” McKechin said. “This is a real setback to the SNP and a personal humiliation for Alex Salmond, who campaigned here no fewer than seven times and told his party members he would win before a single vote had been cast. “I think voters were turned off by the SNP’s arrogant and negative campaign and responded to Labour’s positive vision for our future.” The SNP’s optimism about winning the seat, repeating its shock byelection victory in Glasgow East in 2008, had increased in the later stages of the campaign after its candidate, Anne McLaughlin, attracted significant levels of support on the doorstep. Kenny Gibson, the SNP’s campaign manager, said the party had still achieved a swing of 9% and cut Labour’s majority by more than half in just three weeks. This was a larger swing than it achieved in the equivalent seat in the Holyrood elections in May, he said. “The SNP campaign and the popularity of Anne McLaughlin cut Labour’s majority and puts Labour on notice that they can no longer take voters here for granted,” he said. “There will be real questions for Labour’s leadership after letting such a safe seat come so close to defeat.” Labour’s hopes of holding the seat had been buoyed up by indications that it had done significantly well in the postal votes cast in the first days of the campaign. About 12,000 residents had postal votes, which were sent out several days before the SNP had been able to post its free election address to all voters, party officials said. Scottish politics Labour Scottish National Party (SNP) Liberal Democrats Conservatives Scotland Severin Carrell guardian.co.uk

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