David Cameron
The Liberal Democrats on Friday hung onto the southern England parliamentary seat of Eastleigh, dealing a heavy blow to Prime Minister David Cameron whose Conservative Party were beaten into third place.
The election was billed as a straight battle between the Conservatives and the Lib Dems, their junior coalition partner, but the anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) capitalised on voter disillusionment to claim second place.A senior Conservative earlier warned that third place would be a "crisis" for his party.
The returning officer announced shortly after 02:00 GMT that Lib Dem candidate Mike Thornton had secured 13,342 votes, 1,771 more than UKIP representative Diane James.
Tory nominee Maria Hutchings limped in third with 10,559 votes.AFP
More In: IN SCHOOL | Today's Paper
