Residents react as Coffey is ousted by Labour

Geoff and Mandy Nunn from Felixstowe

Former deputy prime minister Therese Coffey was one of many Conservatives to have been toppled in the election.

She lost a 20,000 majority in Suffolk Coastal, leaving Labour supporters jubilant as Jenny Riddell-Carpenter was voted in with a majority of just over 1,000.

It has been Tory since 1983, when it was created. Ms Coffey had been the MP in Suffolk Coastal since 2010 and it was probably not a seat Labour expected to take.

People in Felixstowe greeted the news of a new Labour MP as "thrilling" and said it was a wake-up call for the Conservatives.

Catherine Buchanan, 73, from Felixstowe, said: "I'm absolutely thrilled. I think it's fantastic for the town that we've got a young female member of parliament who I hope will take into the House of Commons the whole idea that Felixstowe has a lot of poverty - it's not just million-pound houses.

"My main issue for voting was I was so disillusioned," she said.

"I've never voted Tory but I was concerned that the message we were giving to the world was that we're a corrupt country.

"We need to restore some faith in the country and I hope that's going to happen."

Catherine Buchanan, 73, from Felixstowe, said she hoped the new government would "restore some faith in the country".

Mandy Nunn, 62, said the Labour win was "good" for the coastal town and one she was pleased with.

"I think it gives the general population their voice," she said.

"Having worked in the NHS for 40 years I think we're so fed up and we don't like being lied to."

Her husband Geoff, 60, said: "I think it reflects what for me is a lack of interest by the previous sitting MP.

"You're always going to be criticised if you're in government, but [she was] criticised for things such as the swimming and the sewage and the like - and appearing to be doing very little with it... so let's see what the new incumbents do."

Dean Ward, 54, from Felixstowe said the Labour win had "shaken up the country".

Dean Ward, 54, from Felixstowe said the swing to Labour was "a reflection on what the country is actually thinking about what this government's done over the last 14 years - and I think it's something they [the Conservatives] need to reflect on with their attitude and behaviour.

"I think it's shaken the country up a bit."

Therese Coffey had been the MP for Suffolk Coastal since 2010

Helen Clark, 65, said: "I'm very happy - I never thought it would happen during my lifetime.

"It's no slim victory, and you could say that Reform UK were a big part of that victory," she said.

"I've been voting all my life and it's the first time I've ever voted for a candidate who's won, so I'm delighted.

"I've met Jenny [Riddell-Carpenter] - she's fabulous, she's very committed to the local area, which our previous MP wasn't.

"My vote was purely based on getting rid of Therese Coffey - but voting for change as well," she said.

"My Liberal Democrat vote wouldn't have got rid of Therese Coffey."

Ms Clark said the former MP had shown a "lack of interest in her constituency", which was one of the things that "made her a toxic candidate for me".

Mary Ellis, 69, was equally pleased, saying the Labour win was "excellent news for the town".

She voted Labour "because I don't think the Conservatives have done anything for us in the last 14 years and it's time for a change".

She said she had previously voted Conservative several times, as well as for the Liberal Democrats but this time, Labour got her vote.

"I will see what they do in the next five years and make my mind up again," she added.

After the results were returned at Brackenbury Leisure Centre in Felixstowe Ms Coffey refused a post-declaration interview and made a swift exit.

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