In a much-anticipated by-election in Britain, the Conservative Tories have defended former Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s constituency. They won the Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency by 13,965 votes, with the opposition Labor Party losing by 13,470, according to results announced on Friday.

In contrast, the Tories suffered a heavy defeat in the Somerton and Frome constituency. By just 10,179 votes, they lost to the Liberal Democrats, who received 21,187 votes. The Tories have been in power in Britain for 13 years, but have lost support after various scandals and changes in leadership. In recent polls they trail Labor by a wide margin. The by-election in a total of three constituencies, which were previously firmly in the hands of the Tories, was therefore an important test of mood for the conservatives.

The west London constituency of Uxbridge and South Ruislip has been a Conservative Tory stronghold of Johnson and current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for decades. It was eagerly awaited to see whether opposition Labor Party candidate Danny Beales would win against Conservative Steve Tuckwell.