WHY YOUR VOTE ALWAYS COUNTS
Zac Goldsmith among five candidates who won with margins of less than 50 – including one seat settled by TWO votes
IF you ever need a reason why your vote counts, look at these five candidates who won by less than 50 votes, including one who claimed victory by two votes.
The SNP held onto the North East Fife seat in Scotland after beating the Lib Dems by just two votes in one of a number of results that came right down to the wire.
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It was the final Scottish seat to declare and the closest result of the election so far following two recounts.
The SNP's Stephen Gethins won 13,743 votes compared with Janet Riches of the Scottish Liberal Democrats who polled 13,741.
It is the joint-third narrowest victory in UK general election history and the closest since the Lib Dem's Mark Oaten won Winchester by two in 1997.
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As the vote counts came in overnight, it was clear a number of constituencies were seeing some incredibly close results.
In Dudley North, the votes had be counted three times over nine hours before Labour claimed victory.
MP Ian Austin retained his seat by the skin of his teeth by just 22 votes.
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Labour managed to hold on in Newcastle Under Lyme with a majority of just 30 as Paul Farrelly beat Tory rival Owen Meredith.
Mr Farrelly has held the seat since 2001, but was only two per cent in 2015.
The margin narrowed even further this time, prompting the need for two recounts.
Zac Goldsmith won Richmond Park back for the Tories by just 45 votes.
The former London Mayor candidate clawed back the seat with the narrow majority - proving every vote counts.
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There had to be four recounts before the result was declared in what turned out to be one of the most dramatic in the election.
Goldsmith lost Richmond Park last year in a by-election triggered over the Heathrow expansion - which he blamed on the “total, total invasion” of Liberal Democrat activists.
The seat was also lost shortly after Brexit as Remainers slammed him on social media for his "racist" Mayoral campaign against Sadiq Khan.
He said: “I’m grateful to my constituents for having put their trust in me again. I hope that I will never let them down – we have the most special community in the world and representing them is an unimaginable honour.”
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Tory MP Royston Smith held off Labour's Simon Letts by just 31 votes in Southampton Itchen following two recounts.
Labour's Laura Smith, whose campaign focused heavily on Tory cuts to schools, won the Crewe and Nantwich seat from the Conservatives' Edward Timpson by 48 votes, after a series of recounts.
Britain has a hung parliament, with no party able to claim an absolute majority in the House of Commons.
Some of the key details from the turbulent night so far:
- Hung parliament confirmed with Tories missing out on majority of 326 with polls predicting 318 seats - down from 330
- Labour forecast to take 262 - up from 232 in 2015. They are
- Theresa May faces mounting pressure – with the odds slashed on Boris Johnson to be the next PM
- Fears grow Brexit negotiations could be sunk if Mrs May does not secure a majority
- Lib Dem Nick Clegg loses Sheffield Hallam seat but Vince Cable regains Twickenham while leader Tim Farron clings on
- Home Secretary Amber Rudd holds on to Hastings seat by barely 300 votes
- Huge losses for SNP as former chief Alex Salmond and deputy leader Angus Robertson are both beaten by the Tories.
- Labour on march in London beating Tories to Battersea constituency
- Pound slides two per cent as exit poll predicts hung parliament
- Ukip voters desert party with vote share down by ten per cent
- Growing fears that Mrs May will have to call a second election later this year
- Sources claim Theresa May is not planning to resign - and instead "has every intention of forming a government with the DUP"