Jeremy Corbyn has won Islington North, the constituency he has represented since 1983, but for the first time he has been elected as an independent MP. The former opposition leader defeated Praful Nargund, a local Labour councillor who was chosen as the party’s candidate by the party’s executive committee in May. Corbyn won 24,120 votes to Nargund’s 16,873. Turnout in the election was 67.5%, up from 71.6% in 2019.
In his victory speech, Corbyn said he had run a “positive campaign”. The political system must provide answers to social problems, he said, adding that demonising asylum seekers was not the answer. He was proud that his constituency had championed “kinder, kinder, more inclusive policies”.
Corbyn added: “I couldn’t be prouder of my constituency than I am tonight, and proud of our team for delivering this result. “A big thank you to Islington North for the result we’ve delivered tonight.”
Corbyn, 75, told reporters it had been a “very interesting evening in the political history of this country” and that he was “looking forward to being part of that history”.
Asked whether Keir Starmer would make a good prime minister, Corbyn replied: “Well, let’s see what happens. He’ll be prime minister, he’ll have a huge majority in parliament, he’ll have presented a programme which is, to say the least, thin and doesn’t offer a serious economic alternative to what the Conservative government is doing. So the demands of the people will be enormous.”
“If spending on social needs, which are urgent, is not increased, I think there will be political problems. He should have known that when he agreed to this program, which is a kind of straitjacket for every proposal he wants to promote,” he declared.
And he added: “If, for example, the Government ends the cap on benefits for two children, hallelujah! I will be delighted. But if they don’t, I will be there saying: why didn’t they do it? If they introduce rent controls in the private sector, well done. If they don’t, I will be there. Because this is a vote to show that people want a real, independent voice in Parliament that speaks for social justice.”
Keir Starmer prevented Corbyn from running for Labour in March 2023, but shortly after the election was called he announced he would run as an independent, leading to his expulsion from Labour.
In October 2020, Corbyn was suspended after responding to allegations that he had downplayed antisemitism in the party during his time as Labour leader, saying it was a problem that had been “dramatically exaggerated for political reasons”, in response to a critical report from the equalities watchdog.
He was readmitted to the party after 19 days, but Starmer's refusal to reinstate him as parliamentary spokesman meant he remained an independent deputy until a general election was called.
Corbyn’s campaign faced the difficulty of overcoming his close ties to the Labour Party, as many voters in his north London constituency seemed unaware that he was not the party’s candidate in the election. Facing an uphill battle without Labour’s data and infrastructure, Corbyn’s campaign relied on volunteers from across the UK to support the door-knocking.
His victory ends a tradition of Labour votes in Islington North since the 1937 by-election.