General election 2010: Blue Winchester spells end to Lib Dems’ ‘golden triangle’
By Catherine Stevenson
Defeat in Winchester has confirmed the end of the Liberal Democrats’ ‘golden triangle’ in Hampshire.
The Conservatives secured two out of three of the seats in the triangle and only Eastleigh remains in Lib Dem hands. Romsey and Southampton North had fallen to the Conservatives earlier.
The last of these seats to be called was Winchester, which was taken by the Conservatives following a 9.1% swing in votes from the Liberal Democrats.
Conservative candidate Steve Brine took 48.5% of the vote giving him a majority of 3,048.
Defeat in Winchester is another hard blow for the Lib Dems who have not performed as well as anticipated in the election following their polling surge, which dominated the campaign.
