Sixteen candidates in total ran in the contest in Batley and Spen.

Turnout was 47.6%, with 37,786 verified ballots cast out of a total electorate of 79,373.

Image source, PA Media

George Galloway, standing for the Workers Party of Britain, came third with 21.9% of the vote.

The former Labour and Respect MP had been accused of sowing divisions during the election campaign, which saw his party clash with Labour supporters.

However, Galloway said he would take legal action to get the result set aside, claiming his efforts had been damaged by a "false statement" that he had laughed while Kim Leadbeater was abused on the campaign trail.

"The whole election campaign was dominated by lazy and false tropes about our campaign, about the thousands of people that voted for us, about their motives for doing so, in a way which defamed them as much as it defamed me," he said.

"So on multiple grounds we will apply to the courts for this election result to be set aside."

Galloway was expelled from Labour in 2003, following outspoken criticism of the Iraq war, and later served as an MP for the Respect Party.

Image source, PA Media

Batley and Spen’s new MP says she was “born and bred” in her constituency, which she says has been “really important to people” as they decided who to vote for in the by-election.

But what do we know about her?

As a youngster she attended Heckmondwike primary and grammar school in West Yorkshire and went on to work in shops in the area before becoming an exercise instructor.

Leadbeater returned to education at the age of 25 to become a teacher and once she had qualified she began lecturing at Kirklees College in Dewsbury and Bradford College.

She later set up her own fitness and wellbeing business, teaching classes across Batley and Spen.

Her sister and former Batley and Spen MP, Jo Cox, was murdered in her constituency in 2016. The Jo Cox Foundation was set up in her sister’s honour and Leadbeater became an ambassador for the charity.

During the pandemic, she co-ordinated mutual aid groups and since March 2020 she has raised £53,000 in direct support for the most vulnerable.

Leadbeater received an MBE for her dedication to social cohesion and combating loneliness in the past year in the 2021 New Year’s Honours List.

In case you're just joining us, here's a round-up of what's happening:

• Labour have held on to the seat of Batley and Spen with just over 13,000 votes
• The Conservatives came in second place, narrowly losing their opportunity to take the seat
• Labour's majority is 323 votes
• George Galloway's Workers' Party polled at 8,264 votes, and he has said he will form a legal case to challenge the result
• The result has made life easier for Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, who was facing rumours of a leadership challenge had Labour lost the seat
• Conservative Party Chair, Amanda Milling, said the result was not surprising, as governing parties lose by-elections.

Image source, PA Media

The Batley and Spen by-election was no "normal" election, according to the Labour MP for Bradford West.

Naz Shah has been supporting Kim Leadbeater's campaign amid ugly flare-ups and instances of intimidation on the streets.

Given the 2016 murder of Kim Leadbeater's sister - the then Batley and Spen MP Jo Cox, Naz Shah said the campaign had been "exhausting".

"Emotionally it really has been because of the history and the legacy.

“To have to protect Kim knowing that here is a woman standing for election that lost her own sibling on these streets… it has not been easy for people and it makes it much more than just winning an election for us."

Former Labour leader, now independent MP, Jeremy Corbyn, has congratulated Kim Leadbeater.

He says a "fractured community" must now be brought back together.

The by-election campaign was fraught with divisions, culminating in Kim Leadbeater requiring police protection.

Candidates said it was the first time they had seen police officers at an election count.

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Former Labour cabinet minister Lord Mandelson says this is "a really important victory" for the party.

“It’s a victory, frankly, against the politics of very ugly division, represented by George Galloway," the co-founder of New Labour tells BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

“There were elements of the Corbynite left who seemed far too eager during this campaign for Galloway’s presence to result in a blow for Starmer and his leadership.”

He accuses Corbyn-supporters of "conspiring", following reports that Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer might have faced a challenge from his deputy Angela Rayner if the party lost another northern English constituency to the Tories.

“[Rayner] should realise that these are not her friends. She’s being egged on by people who are serving their own factional purposes and interests, not hers.”

He adds that the result is a chance for Starmer "to take the party in an election winning direction".

"We’ve got to demonstrate that we’re ready for government in our policies, our outlook and optimism for Britain, our ambitions for the country," Mandelson says.

"At the moment, and I will be honest about this, that’s not how we are seen by sufficient numbers of people.”

Brendan Cox, the widower of Jo Cox who used to represent the seat of Batley and Spen before she was murdered by a far-right extremist in 2016, has complimented the campaign by the Conservative Ryan Stephenson.

In a thinly-veiled reference to George Galloway's campaign for the seat, he said Mr Stephenson fought the campaign "on the issues" and didn't pander to divisions.

Galloway's campaign included a leaflet which said a vote for him was a way to "say no to wokeness".

Drama built as Labour retained its Batley and Spen seat by a narrow margin.

Throughout the night at Cathedral House, rumours spread throughout the press balcony about how narrow the contest had become.

Read more about the night's count and the result.

James Vincent
Political Editor BBC Look North

There will be a big “phew” coming from Labour door-knockers this morning - they may even be excused a large wipe of the brow.

It was close, in door-knocking terms - 323 votes is just an extra couple of streets of hard graft in the summer heat.

Labour will put this victory down to two things - a strong campaign on the ground and localness.

As part of our coverage I went out to film with the Labour campaigners and saw Kim Leadbeater literally running around getting to as many doors as she could.

She was also the only candidate of 16 to actually live in the constituency.

One of those 323 winning votes was her own.

Her campaign focused heavily on her knowing the people of Batley and Spen well.

One of her key lines to voters was that after this is all over she’d still be living with the result here.

She’ll be pretty happy with who her local MP is this morning.

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Image source, Reuters

Labour MP and former shadow home secretary Diane Abbott says the by-election is a "great result".

"Of course we have to continue to think about policy and sharpen and better define policy but we won and we’re moving forward," she tells BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

Abbott, who is an ally of former leader Jeremy Corbyn, adds: “I think it’s about not abandoning the policies that were popular in 2019. I think it’s about getting our policy direction right and making it clear.”

Labour MPs have taken to Twitter to congratulate their new colleague, Kim Leadbeater.

Former friend of Jo Cox, MP Jess Phillips, tweeted: "The people of Batley are awesome" and said "hope and love can win but it is harder and takes considerably more work than hate which any fool can do".

Fellow Labour MP Andrew Gwynne tweeted: "Can’t tell you what a relief it is to wake up to this result after all the poison and division this by-election has created."

Shadow foreign secretary Lisa Nandy tweeted that it was a "stunning result that means so much to the whole Labour family", adding: "Kim fought off a toxic campaign with energy and positivity. She will be an amazing champion for Batley and Spen."

Manchester MP Lucy Powell tweeted that she was "so proud of Kim the way she has conducted herself, her courage and determination".

Kim Leadbeater, the newly elected MP for Batley and Spen, pays tribute to her sister Jo Cox.

Image source, PA Media

If you’re just joining us, here’s a re-cap of what’s happened overnight and this morning.

Labour’s Kim Leadbeater has narrowly won the Batley and Spen by-election with a majority of 323.

It means she now represents the seat previously held by her sister Jo Cox, who was murdered in the constituency in 2016.

The result will ease pressure on Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer after recent election defeats for his party. It had been reported he may have faced a challenge from his deputy Angela Rayner if the party lost another northern English constituency to the Tories.

Sixteen candidates ran in the by-election, including the former Labour and Respect MP George Galloway.

Tory candidate Ryan Stephenson came second with 12,973 to Ms Leadbeater’s 13,296, and Mr Galloway third with 8,264.

The turnout was 47.6%, with 37,786 verified ballots cast out of a total electorate of 79,373.

Deputy political editor of The Guardian, Jessica Elgot, has tweeted that there is a beginning of return to politics as normal, but it "depends on Starmer now".

Political editor of the Daily Mirror, Pippa Crerar, says there's a chance for the Labour leader to "reset the narrative as leadership speculation abates (for now)".

But, she says, "there's hard work ahead to try to communicate what his Labour stands for".

Read more from BBC political correspondent Iain Watson on Sir Keir Starmer: His first year as Labour leader.

Image source, Reuters

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has praised the "inspiring resilience" shown by Kim Leadbeater in her victory "against the odds" in the Batley and Spen by-election.

"This is a fantastic result for the brilliant and brave Kim Leadbeater who will be an incredible Labour MP for Batley and Spen," he said in a statement.

"Kim has shown inspiring resilience in the face of hatred and intimidation. She was unafraid to call it out and ran a positive campaign of hope.

"Kim embodies everything I want the Labour Party to stand for: passionate about her local community and determined to bring people together.

"We won this election against the odds, and we did so by showing that when we are true to our values - decency, honesty, committed to improving lives - then Labour can win.

"This result shows Labour at its best. This is just the start."

BBC Breakfast

Conservative Party co-chairman Amanda Milling tells BBC Breakfast it was "always going to be a tough election" for her party.

"We fought a really hard campaign, a positive campaign, obviously I’m disappointed that we didn’t win but we just came within 300 votes of gaining and that in itself is quite an exceptional result," she says.

"At this point in the election cycle [for a governing party] we have done incredibly well."

Conservative candidate Ryan Stephenson came second with 12,973 votes, behind Labour candidate Kim Leadbeater who took the seat with 13,296 votes.

Milling says the recent resignation of former Health Secretary Matt Hancock "did come up on the doorstep, but so did a whole range of issues".

It was "right" Hancock resigned, she says.

The former health secretary quit his ministerial role on Saturday after he breached social distancing guidance by kissing a colleague.

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Political analyst Prof Sir John Curtice says the result provides Labour with "a certain amount of breathing room" but it does not demonstrate the party has "turned a corner".

“Labour’s share of the vote is actually down by over seven points in the constituency – that’s only a little less than the drop in the party’s vote in Hartlepool," he says.

Prof Curtice adds that it was "yet another remarkable performance" by George Galloway, who got as much as 22% of the vote.

He says the former Respect MP likely took votes from Labour by appealing to people from an Asian or Muslim background.

But he also may have picked up Tory votes by taking a socially conservative position on some issues, such as gay rights, and because he is pro-Brexit, Prof Curtice adds.

“That said, I think the Conservatives will certainly be kicking themselves that they did not manage to win this constituency," he says, adding that the resignation of former Health Secretary Matt Hancock may have had an impact on the result.

BBC Breakfast

Image source, Getty Images

Brendan Cox, husband of murdered MP Jo Cox, says he and his family are "incredibly proud" of Kim Leadbeater after her win, following a "bruising and pretty horrible campaign".

"It's a big day, just on that personal level we're all incredibly proud of what Kim's done," he tells BBC Breakfast.

"She was incredibly brave to step forward into it, not just around the security side of things given what happened to Jo but also the context, it was a very bruising and pretty horrible campaign at times."

Mr Cox says the majority of the by-election in Batley and Spen had been good natured, but several marginal candidates had sought to divide communities which is "easy to do in politics".

He praises Leadbeater for her focus on connecting people, which he said is "ultimately what got her over the line".