A former Brighton television presenter missed out on snatching a safe Conservative seat in the House of Commons despite winning almost 40 per cent of the vote in East Worthing and Shoreham.
Sophie Cook enjoyed one of the biggest swings at the election – more than 19 per cent – but still ended up 5,000 votes behind the Tory incumbent Tim Loughton.
Mr Loughton polled 25,988 votes – or 48.9 per cent – an increase of just over 1,300 on May 2015.
But yesterday (Thursday 8 June) his majority was cut from 14,949 to 5,106 after a spirited campaign by the transgender TV presenter.
Sophie Cook polled 20,882 votes – or 39.3 per cent – more than double the 9,737 won by Labour when it also finished second two years ago.
This morning she said: “Lots of people are asking me if I’ll stick around to fight for East Worthing and Shoreham.
“Obviously it’s not up to me who the candidate would be in any upcoming elections but until someone tells me otherwise I will continue to do what I think is right for the 20,882 people that put their trust in me yesterday.
“For me, the next general election campaign starts on Monday, but for now, I’m going to have a couple of days off.”
