LUKE Hall has been re-elected as MP for Thornbury and Yate following yesterday’s snap general election, with a margin of more than 12,000.

With only weeks to prepare campaigns after Theresa May called a snap election on April 18, Mr Hall faced strong opposition from Liberal Democrat South Gloucestershire councillor Claire Young, Labour candidate Brian Mead and the Green Party’s Iain Hamilton.

A close battle had been expected between Mr Hall and Ms Young, with the parties having clashed two years ago, where Mr Hall unseated longstanding Lib Dem MP Sir Steve Webb, winning with a slim majority of 1,495.

Having come third in Thornbury and Yate back in 2015, UKIP announced they would not campaign for the seat, instead throwing weight behind Mr Hall.

Walking away with the victory, the Conservative candidate received a comfortable 28,008 votes, compared to the 15,937 for Ms Young.

Brian Mead meanwhile received 6,112, with Mr Hamilton getting 633 votes.

There was a high turnout across Thornbury and Yate with 50,789 people casting their vote – 74.8 per cent of the electorate.

Speaking to the Gazette after the results, Mr Hall said he was “absolutely ecstatic”.

“It is such a genuine privilege to represent my home constituency,” he said. “I have really enjoyed it for the past two years and have strived to do it the best that I can.

“To be re-elected with such a strong mandate is hugely humbling, and I look forward to serving the community in the years ahead.

“I want to continue the campaigns I have been working on for the past two years, getting broadband for our rural areas, improving our infrastructure across South Gloucestershire, getting better health services and protecting us against poorly planned development across South Gloucestershire.

“There is a lot more to do, but I want to make sure I do the best possible job for everyone in Thornbury and Yate.”

Turning his attention towards the potential of hung Parliament, with neither the Conservatives or Labour at the time looking to get a majority in the Commons, he said: “First and foremost I have been at this count and have not seen all the results come in, but as far as I understand, the exit poll points to the Conservatives being the largest party and receiving the largest amount of votes.

“Results are still coming in and I am sure that in the early hours of this morning we can take a better look at the bigger national picture, but for now I am absolutely delighted to be re-elected for my home constituency.”