Jeremy Corbyn re-elected in Islington North after expulsion from Labour Party

Jeremy Corbyn has retained his seat in Islington North, the constituency he has represented since 1983, but for the first time, he has been elected as an independent MP.

The former Labour leader defeated Praful Nargund, a local Labour councillor selected by the party's executive committee as its candidate in May. Corbyn garnered 24,120 votes, while Nargund received 16,873 votes. Voter turnout for the election was 67.5%, down from 71.6% in 2019, reports The Gaurdian.

In his victory speech, Corbyn said he had fought a "positive campaign". He said he was proud of his constituency for standing up for a "kinder, gentler, more inclusive politics".

Corbyn added: "I couldn't be more proud of my constituency than I am tonight and proud of our team that brought this result. Thank you very much Islington North for the result we have achieved tonight."

Corbyn, 75, told reporters it had been a "very interesting night in the political history of this country" and he was "looking forward to being part of that history".

Asked whether Keir Starmer would make a good prime minister, Corbyn said: "Well, let's see what happens. He will become prime minister, he will have a very large majority in parliament, he has put forward a manifesto that is thin to put it mildly and doesn't offer a serious economic alternative to what the Conservative government is doing. And so the demands on him are going to be huge, the demands from the people are going to be huge.

"If you don't give yourself space, to increase spending on the desperate social needs, I mentioned the two-child policy, but there are plenty of others, then I think there are going to be political problems. He must have known this when he agreed this manifesto which is a bit of a straitjacket around any proposals he may want to push forward."

He added: "If the government ends the two-child benefit cap for example, hallelujah! I will be delighted. But if they don't, I'll be there, saying: why haven't you done it? If they bring in rent controls in the private sector, well done. If they don't, I'll be there. Because this is a vote to show that people do want a true and independent voice in parliament to speak up for social justice."

According to the Gaurdian, in March 2023, Keir Starmer blocked Jeremy Corbyn from standing as a Labour candidate. Shortly after the election was called, Corbyn announced he would run as an independent, which led to his expulsion from the Labour Party.

In October 2020, Corbyn was suspended from the party and lost the parliamentary whip after describing antisemitism in Labour as "dramatically overstated for political reasons" in response to a critical report from the equality watchdog.

His victory ends a tradition of Islington North voting for Labour that dates back to a by-election in 1937.