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Labour Holds Stoke-on-Trent Central - Ukip Just in Second Ahead Of The Tories

No Ukip political earthquake here.
Graeme Demianyk
By 

Senior Editor, HuffPost UK

LOADINGERROR LOADING

Labour has held Stoke-on-Trent Central after Ukip leader Paul Nuttall’s bid to take the seat failed.

Nuttall is likely to face questions about the future of the party after Labour candidate Gareth Snell retained the seat with 7,853 votes.

Nuttall, whose campaign was blighted by false claims he lost “close friends” in the Hillsborough disaster, received 5,233 votes - a comfortable win for Labour given the much-trumpeted threat Ukip poses to Labour in the north of England.

Ukip leader Paul Nuttall (R) reacts after losing the Stoke Central by-election in Stoke on Trent.
Ukip leader Paul Nuttall (R) reacts after losing the Stoke Central by-election in Stoke on Trent.
Darren Staples / Reuters

Nuttall only just beat the Tories.

The full result of the #StokeCentral by-election won by @gareth_snell #bbctw pic.twitter.com/OCaCsYXuTX

— BBC This Week (@bbcthisweek) February 24, 2017

Defending his campaign while being harangued by reporters, Nuttall claimed the seat was only 17th on his party’s target list.

He said: “We are not going anywhere and I am not going anywhere. We will go on and have success in the future.”

He then struggled to find his car.

"Where's the car?" Nuttall searching for his getaway car after disappointing Stoke by-election result pic.twitter.com/9s7VxnVb6K

— Jessica Elgot (@jessicaelgot) February 24, 2017
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