Labour MP Rachel Reeves re-elected in Leeds West and Pudsey
Rachel Reeves has been triumphant in Leeds West and Pudsey, setting her on course to become the first female Chancellor of the Exchequer.
The high-profile Labour politician was re-elected with 18,976 votes, beating her closest rival, Conservative candidate Lee Farmer, by more than 12,000 votes.
Mrs Reeves, a former economist at the Bank of England, has been the MP for Leeds West since 2010, rising to the role of Shadow Chancellor four years ago.
A key member of Keir Starmer’s team, her win was announced to applause in the John Charles Centre for Sport at 2am this morning (July 5).
Her victory sets the stage for her to take the reins of the British economy, as she is more than likely to become Chancellor in the next government.
A final poll by YouGov predicted that she would comfortably hold onto her seat in Leeds West and Pudsey. In third place was Andrea Whitehead, the Reform UK candidate, with 6,281 votes, while Ann Forsaith of the Green Party came in fourth with 3,794 votes.
The high-profile Labour politician was re-elected with 18,976 votes, beating her closest rival, Conservative candidate Lee Farmer, by more than 12,000 votes.
Mrs Reeves, a former economist at the Bank of England, has been the MP for Leeds West since 2010, rising to the role of Shadow Chancellor four years ago.
A key member of Keir Starmer’s team, her win was announced to applause in the John Charles Centre for Sport at 2am this morning (July 5).
Her victory sets the stage for her to take the reins of the British economy, as she is more than likely to become Chancellor in the next government.
A final poll by YouGov predicted that she would comfortably hold onto her seat in Leeds West and Pudsey. In third place was Andrea Whitehead, the Reform UK candidate, with 6,281 votes, while Ann Forsaith of the Green Party came in fourth with 3,794 votes.
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NewsTranscript
00:00I hereby declare that Rachel Reeves is duly elected as the Member of Parliament for the
00:06Leeds West and Pwtsey constituency.
00:11Thank you, it is a huge honour and a privilege to have been returned as the Labour Member
00:28of Parliament for Leeds West and Pwtsey.
00:30Let me begin by thanking the returning officer, the counting agents, the polling clerks and
00:39the police who make elections possible.
00:41Let me also thank the other candidates in this contest for the campaigns that they
00:46have run.
00:47I want to thank my team, all our Labour councillors and everyone who has volunteered in Armley,
00:54Bramley, Calverley, Farsley and Pwtsey.
00:58I could never list all of those whose support and friendship I have been so grateful for
01:04these last 14 years or more.
01:07But special thanks must go to my election agent, Joe Fiddes, and also to my predecessor
01:18John Battle, whose support and generosity has been invaluable for so many years.
01:26A word too for somebody who isn't with us today.
01:29Jane Hill, who ran my constituency office for the best part of the last decade, was
01:35a great friend to so many of us.
01:37She was Labour through and through, but she died a few weeks before the election took
01:42place.
01:43Many of us will miss her this evening, including me.
01:46But thanks above all goes to the people of Leeds West and Pwtsey.
01:50I have been so proud to represent Armley and Bramley for the last 14 years and I will do
01:56everything in my power to repay your support.
01:59And to the people of Calverley and Farsley and Pwtsey, who have returned a Labour Member
02:04of Parliament for the first time in more than 14 years, you have put your trust in me and
02:10I will not let you down.
02:12My job now is to speak for the whole constituency, those who voted for me and those who didn't,
02:18and I promise I will do just that.
02:21I will fight for you every day, to deliver the change that people in Leeds West and Pwtsey
02:26need and deserve.
02:30I do not want to pre-empt the results that are still to come, but if what we have seen
02:36so far holds out, then it is clear that the British people have voted for change.
02:43That in the coming hours, after 14 years, people will wake up to the prospect of a new
02:49government.
02:50The first Labour victory in nearly two decades.
02:55A page turned.
02:57A new chapter started.
02:59A chance to look ahead to a brighter future that seemed so remote for so long.
03:06You have put your trust in Labour.
03:09Thanks to Keir Starmer's leadership, a changed Labour Party in the service of ordinary working
03:14people.
03:15We have promised to end the chaos, to turn the page and to get to work on rebuilding
03:21our country.
03:22And we will do so.
03:24We have sought the opportunity to govern not for self-interest, but to serve in the national
03:30interest.
03:31To tackle the cost of living crisis and make work pay.
03:34To rebuild our health service and our schools.
03:36To drive growth in every part of our great country and to restore the stability that
03:41Britain has sorely lacked for too long.
03:44But I know that the road ahead will not be easy.
03:48There are no quick fixes and the hard choices lie ahead.
03:53We are under no illusions about the scale of the challenge that we face, or about the
03:58severity of the challenges that we will inherit from the Conservatives.
04:03It will come with a great weight of responsibility.
04:08I embrace it.
04:10It will demand hard work and harder choices.
04:13I am ready for them.
04:15And to those of you who have put your trust in us, we will not squander that trust.
04:21We have set out the first steps that we will take towards that better Britain and the missions
04:26to pin a decade of national renewal.
04:28There is much to do.
04:30We have campaigned as we mean to go on.
04:33As a government of unity, not of division.
04:35A government of wealth creation and a government in the national interest.
04:40Country first, party second.
04:43That is our promise to Britain.
04:45That is my promise to the people of Leeds West and Pudsey.
04:49We will not let you down.
04:51I will not let you down.
04:54And I can't wait to get started.
04:56Thank you very much.