- author, Lisa Young
- role, BBC News, South West
Analysts say Cornwall has experienced a “once in a century” political event after the Conservatives lost every seat in the county.
Voters in South East Cornwall, St Austell and Newquay elected Labour MPs for the first time.
Dr Stuart Fox, senior lecturer in politics at the University of Exeter, said it was “highly remarkable” that the Conservative Party was no longer represented in the county.
“This is definitely a once in a century event for Cornwall, there’s no doubt about that,” he said.
“It’s really surprising that the Conservative Party is not represented in what would be considered its traditional core vote.”
“The Collapse of Conservatism”
Dr Fox said the Liberal Democrats had made “incredible progress” since winning the St Ives and North Cornwall constituency in rebuilding some of their former strongholds.
“One of the reasons the Conservatives have always done well is because there’s a lot of land in Cornwall and a lot of landowners,” he said.
“That’s some of the core Conservative voters, but there’s also a lot of rural areas and small country villages that are core Conservative voters.”
Dr Fox said he did not believe Labour was “accepted”, despite the party currently having two MPs in Cornwall.
“The simple answer to what’s happening in Cornwall is that Cornwall has rejected the Conservatives and is seeking some alternatives,” he said.
“In effect, the Reform Party has eaten into so many Conservative votes that it has lowered the bar that Labour and the Liberal Democrats have to overcome to win.”
Adrian Lee, another political analyst, said the Conservative vote in Cornwall “has not just collapsed, it has split”, and said it was “historic” that South East Cornwall had elected a Labour MP.
“To find a change this big, you have to go back to 1923 when the Liberals won by a landslide, then 1924 when they lost again,” he said.
“Around a third of the Conservative vote in South East Cornwall has been lost.”
Lee said the uniformity of the Reform vote in Cornwall was particularly remarkable.
“It’s clear when you look at the change in votes between Labour and the Liberal Democrats in Cornwall that there was a degree of strategic voting going on – and it’s been partly hidden given the collapse of the Conservatives and the rise of the Reform Party,” he said.
The BBC spoke to people around Cornwall after the results were announced.
Bodmin resident Addie Dove said the change was “desperately needed for a long time”.
John Hosking, who lives near Liskeard, said he thought Cheryl Murray, who lost her South East Cornwall seat, was “paying the price for the Conservative performance nationally”.
“I think the Conservative party lost the election from the moment Liz Truss became leader,” he said.
“This election was bound to be a one-sided outcome.”
