Jeremy Hunt won his Godalming and Ash seat by around 1,000 votes (Image: PA )

       The former Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will be returned to Parliament after staging a breathtaking defence of his seat on a disastrous night for the Conservative party.

       Mr Hunt has been campaigning relentlessly in the new constituency of Godalming and Ash which replaced the South West Surrey seat which the Tory stalwart had previously held in 2019 with a majority of around 10,000.

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       Tonight Mr Hunt was declared the victor once more, but this time with a majority over his rival from the Liberal Democrats of just under 1,000 votes.

       It comes as many former Conservative Cabinet ministers lost their seats, including Penny Mordaunt and Grant Schapps. However, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was able to keep his North Yorkshire constituency of Richmond and Northallerton.

       Mr Hunt was gracious in victory and in defeat for his party and wished the incoming Labour government well. His wife Lucia was seen in the crowd reacting with emotion as her husband won the seat.

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       Mr Hunt has been relentless in his local campaigning to hold the seat (Image: PA )

       After winning his seat against his closest rival Lib Dem Paul Follows, Mr Hunt admitted the General Election has been a "crushing defeat" for the Conservatives.

       He said: "When you lose trust of the electorate you need to have the courage and humility to ask why so you can earn back trust again."

       Mr Hunt had represented South West Surrey since 2004 until boundary changes this year.

       During the election campaign the senior Tory politician appeared to concentrate on knocking on doors and speaking to the electorate locally which seems to have paid off tonight.

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       Jeremy Hunt's wife Lucia reacts to the result (Image: Jonathan Buckmaster )

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       Mr Hunt posted a last photo on his X account before polling day showing himself and his wife Lucia out and about canvassing for votes.

       And he previously posted with just days to go a local message to supporters, writing: "Whatever the national polls say, you can make a difference locally with your vote.

       "As local MP for SW Surrey, I have spent nearly 20 years working with local residents to get things done."

       The veteran politician then detailed his six-point plan for the constituency with improvements to road safety, and the introduction of speed cameras and pedestrian crossing points.

       Godalming and Ash results

       Conservative, Jeremy Hunt

       23,293

       Liberal Democrat, Paul Follows

       22,402

       Reform UK, Graham Drage

       4,815

       Labour, James Walsh

       2,748

       Green, Ruby Tucker

       1,243

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