As the Liberal Democrats have been beaten comprehensibly by the Conservatives in the Guildford parliamentary constituency contest, perhaps in future we shall be spared the “It’s so close here!” claims and their “Winning here!” posters.

The Liberal Democrats successfully mobilised and maximised their student support at Surrey University. They squeezed further the Labour vote, from Karen Landles’ 5,054 in 2005 to Tim Shand’s current 2,812. At this election, unlike that of 2005, the Liberal Democrats did not have to contend with a potential loss of votes to the Green Party candidate (John Pletts secured 811 votes in 2005.)  Notwithstanding all of this, the Conservatives’ candidate Anne Milton increased her majority from 347 in 2005 to 7,782 in May 2010.  The Liberal Democrats can no longer claim that a tactical vote in their favour by Labour supporters will help to defeat the Conservative candidate.   This was an emphatic, decisive victory for Anne Milton.

General Election Results: Guildford