By Mindy Burrows and Cameron Eyles
December 13 2019, 04.00
Follow @SW_Londoner
Conservative candidate Elliot Colburn took the Carshalton and Wallington seat from Liberal Democrats’ Tom Brake, who has held the position for 22 years.
Tensions ran high as a recount was announced, but in the end Mr Brake was beaten by 629 votes. Mr Colburn secured 20,822 votes as Tom Brake gained 20,193 votes
Labour candidate Ahman Wattoo won 6,081 votes, while the Brexit Party’s James Woudhuysen polled 1,043 votes, Green Party’s Tracey Hague gained 759 votes and Christian Peoples Alliance’s Ashley Dickenson got 200 votes.
In his winning speech Mr Colburn thanked Mr Brake for inspiring him and paid tribute to how long the Liberal Democrat had held the post.
He said: “Whilst we’ve never agreed on everything, I do think we’ve agreed on quite a lot over the years and when Tom first met me as a young teenager, probably with a bit too much to say for himself, I never will forget that Tom never dissuaded me from pursuing what I really believed in and going after my ambitions.
“I will always be incredibly grateful for a decision that Tom took in 2012 to allow people like me, and the entire LGBT+ community, to marry who they love and I will always be personally grateful for that.”
Mr Brake joked that perhaps he would have given Mr Colburn different advice in the past had he known he would be losing his seat to him now.
He said: “I know that the Carshalton residents deserve to be represented by someone who is an effective and compassionate member of parliament and I’m sure that Elliot will be that, so they will be left in good hands.”
Mr Brake had served as MP for the constituency since 1997.
The turnout was 67.5% (49,227), down from 2017’s 71.9% (50,969).
