VOTERS in the Henley constituency turned out in very impressive numbers yesterday, creating a turnout of 73.3% – compared to a 50.3% turnout in the 2008 By election to replace Boris Johnson, and a 67.9% turnout for the 2005 General Election.
The winning Candidate, John Howell, Conservative, said after his election: “Although I am delighted to have won, I took nothing for granted. We fought this election in a very different way, going to where the people were, in their homes and in pubs, and it has worked.
“The fact that my majority has increased is a reflection of people’s confidence in me as a good constituency MP and the result of two years’ hard work which I am looking forward to continuing with.”
John gained 30,054 votes,
The Liberal Democrat candidate, Andy Crick, who came in second with 13,466 votes, said: “The Liberal Democrats saw the number of voters increase significantly on previous results and the election confirmed that the Liberal Democrats are the only challengers to the Conservatives in the Henley constituency.”
Andy added: ?I am very grateful to all the people who gave me their support across south east Oxfordshire. It is of course a disappointment to lose but we moved forward and we increased our vote across the constituency. The great sadness for me is that once again a third of voters have decided the election, which means that two-thirds of residents in Henley have had their views ignored by our arcane electoral system.
?I was backed by a great team which worked extremely hard to deliver change for this area and I am proud of the progress we made.?
The Labour candidate, Richard McKenzie, who got 5,835 votes, said: “We made a 600% increase in our vote from the last election, which means in two elections time we could win!”
He added: “I am tremendously encouraged. We have not only improved not only our position but our vote since the By election which is not only a tribute to the government but to the work that my team in Thamne and Henley have put in.”