The misplaced Conservatives' complacency about the next election

Bedford elected a new Mayor - Liberal Democrat Dave Hodgson. This is a sensational victory for Dave Hodgson and I congratulate him and the Bedford Liberal Democrats for an outstanding campaign

You might not have seen much about this election in the media - but this by-election matters. The Mayor of Bedford represents more people than an MP does, and Dave will be making important decisions that affect the lives of the people of Bedford.

This result shows how misplaced the Conservatives' complacency about the next election really is. The Liberal Democrats have never taken a single vote for granted. With Labour lagging behind at a disastrous fifth this is yet more evidence that the real choice is now between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats.

Nick Clegg MP
Leader of the Liberal Democrats

The full result was:
First preferences:
Lib Dem - Dave Hodgson 9428
Conservative 9105
Independent 7631
Independent 4316
Labour 3482
Green 1183

After second preferences:
Lib Dem - Dave Hodgson 13355
Conservative 11543