Election 2024 – As it happened

It’s the second time in just over a year that the voters of Selby & Ainsty have been to the polls.

A byelection took place on 20 July 2023, following the announcement on 10 June that the Conservative Party MP, Nigel Adams, was standing down from Parliament with immediate effect.

The swing to Labour was a big shock for Rishi Sunak and the Tory government. When Keir Mather took the seat he was just 25, the youngest MP in the Commons, and therefore ‘Baby of the House’.

York Outer was a comfortable hold for Conservative Julian Sturdy in a four-horse race.

Mr Sturdy has held the seat since 2010. But it is a Labour target this time round – number 106 to be precise.

It’s probably a good idea to see our starting points! So here’s how all the constituencies voted last time around.

The last general election, in December 2019, saw the Conservative’s Boris Johnson pitted against Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn, and turned out to be a decisive win for the Tories under their ‘Get Brexit Done’ slogan.

Nevertheless, it was a very comfortable victory for Labour’s Rachael Maskell in December 2019.

Good evening. And it could be a very historic evening. Over the next few hours, we will learn whether the polls were right, and whether a new government is about to take power.

This is our team reporting live this evening:

• Chris Titley is at York Racecourse, where there are three counts tonight – York Central, York Outer and the City of York Council by-election for Hull Road ward
• Ben Anderson is at Harrogate Convention Centre, where there are counts for Harrogate & Knaresborough, Wetherby & Easingwold, Selby and Skipton & Ripon
• Tim Lichfield is at Northallerton Leisure Centre for the Richmond & Northallerton declaration – featuring candidate Rishi Sunak.

We will have all the results from across North Yorkshire and be keeping you up-to-date with the national picture too.

Do send us your thoughts as the night progresses on email at [email protected], or on WhatsApp – 01904 375030.