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RESULT: Conservative retained
David Cameron (Conservative) 33,973Dawn Barnes (Liberal Democrat) 11,233
Joe Goldberg (Labour) 7,511
Stuart Macdonald (Green) 2,385
Nikolai Tolstoy (UKIP) 2,001
Howling Laud Hope (Monster Raving Loony William Hill Party) 234
Paul Wesson (Independent) 166
Johnnie Cook (Independent) 151
Colin Bex (Wessex Regionalists) 62
Aaron Barschak (Independent) 53
Turnout: 73.6 per cent
2005: Conservative (retained)
2005 majority: 14,156
2005 turnout: 69.7%
THE EYES of the world will fall on Witney on May 6 where Conservative leader David Cameron will begin his bid to become the next Prime Minister.
And aside from some colourful characters seeking to share the media spotlight there, few expect a shock at the Windrush Leisure Centre when the count is declared.
Mr Cameron almost doubled his majority in the West Oxfordshire constituency in 2005 winning nearly 50 per cent of the vote.
He has held the seat since 2001 and his majority – now standing at more than 14,000 – looks unassailable.
Perhaps the biggest question for voters is whether Mr Cameron can be a constituency MP and lead the country if the Conservatives win overall power.
Earlier in the campaign he told the Oxford Mail: “Obviously it does put huge pressure on your time but the role of the constituency MP is very important, not just for helping your constituents but also as a daily and weekly reminder of what people are going through in their lives.
” The Liberal Democrats in-creased their share of the vote in 2005 and stole second place from Labour.
They will be hoping the surge in Liberal Democrat popularity, following Nick Clegg’s performances in the TV debates, translates into a polls boost on May 6.
Independent candidate Paul Wesson has probably the best campaign story to tell – submitting his nomination as he sat stranded thousands of miles away in Africa.
Mr Wesson had been working in Sudan since early March and had planned to return at the beginning of the campaign.
But the volcanic ash cloud that spread over Europe kept him in Africa for an extra week and left him playing campaign catch-up on his return.
The constituency has also attracted a number of smaller parties seeking to share the stage and the media spotlight.
The Wessex Regionalists want independence for Wessex and party leader Colin Bex stands in Witney on May 6.
And Alan ‘Howling Laud’ Hope of The Monster Raving Loony William Hill Party makes it three party leaders fighting it out for the West Oxfordshire seat.
Self-styled comedy terrorist Aaron Barschak, infamous for gatecrashing Prince Harry’s birthday party, is also seeking election and ensures it will be a crowded stage when the count is declared.
Boundary changes will also impact on the Witney Constituency at the 2010 election.
Changes to the Parliamentary boundaries were recommended following a countrywide review in 2004 and the Witney constituency boundary is now the same as the West Oxfordshire District Council boundary.
The villages of Yarnton, Shipton-on-Cherwell and Begbroke no longer fall within the Witney constituency.
7:15pm Friday 13th May 2011
A woman had to be cut out of a car after a head-on car crash in Minster Lovell in which two people were injured.
3:00pm Thursday 7th April 2011
FORMER classmates at a Witney school have been reunited after more than 50 years.
10:20am Thursday 17th March 2011
PEOPLE living near RAF Brize Norton were last night preparing to honour the country’s fallen soldiers in their own way.
6:33pm Friday 7th January 2011
Labour candidate Duncan Enright won yesterday's by-election for one of four east ward seats on Witney Town Council.
10:20am Tuesday 14th December 2010
A woman was cut free from a taxi she was driving after a collision with a double-decker bus in Witney yesterday. The woman, in her 60s, was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital with suspected facial and leg injuries.
6:54pm Friday 10th December 2010
Protesters took their message to Prime Minister and Witney MP David Cameron’s door today.
10:30am Tuesday 16th November 2010
A volunteer who stole £6,700 from old people’s day centre where she worked has been given more time to pay the money back.
10:30am Tuesday 16th November 2010
POLICE stopped a petrol station pumping out free fuel to motorists after it created chaos.
2:00pm Tuesday 26th October 2010
ART lovers painted Woodstock red as a public art wall helped kick-start the town’s biggest arts festival.
10:20am Friday 16th July 2010
FITTER, healthier children are what staff at a Carterton primary school are hoping they will get if they win an Olympic revamp.
7:35pm Tuesday 13th July 2010
A laptop, torch and mobile phone were among items taken in a recent spate of thefts from cars in Witney, police said today.
6:29pm Wednesday 30th June 2010
A missing 13-year-old girl from Enstone, near Chipping Norton, has been found safe and well.
11:00am Wednesday 23rd June 2010
LIKE quite a few teenage girls, identical twins Ella and Kitty Gorman have been watching their weight.
10:06pm Tuesday 11th May 2010
DAVID CAMERON became Prime Minister tonight after a day of deal-making with the Liberal Democrats.
2:47pm Friday 7th May 2010
CONSERVATIVE leader David Cameron today extended his hand to Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg in a bid to seize Number 10.
4:16am Friday 7th May 2010
DAVID Cameron reclaimed his seat as Witney MP today, but was left in limbo over whether he would lead the country.
12:41am Friday 7th May 2010
Self-styled comedy terrorist Aaron Barschak has arrived at the Witney Count - wearing a long white robe and crown of thorns.
12:39am Friday 7th May 2010
David Cameron took a detour on his way to tonight's election count at Windrush Leisure Centre for a quick pint.
11:05pm Thursday 6th May 2010
All ballot boxes have arrived in Witney and Thame and counting begins.
6:36pm Tuesday 4th May 2010
IT wouldn’t be a proper election without them, and the Monster Raving Loony Party was seeking votes in Witney yesterday.
9:21am Sunday 2nd May 2010
THERE was good news for David Cameron personally from readers of oxfordmail.co.uk but less reassuring findings for his party following the third leaders' debate.
8:35pm Tuesday 27th April 2010
SOME Oxfordshire householders may find themselves casting a vote in a different constituency, as boundary changes come into force for the first time.
9:10am Sunday 25th April 2010
DAVID BUCKLE's climbdown over holding three of the General Election constituency counts on the day after voting has been welcomed by oxfordmail.co.uk readers.
7:43am Friday 23rd April 2010
DAVID CAMERON becoming Prime Minister would not be positive for Oxfordshire, according to almost two-thirds of voters on oxfordmail.co.uk In our second General Election ballot, we asked if the Witney MP's elevation to Downing Street would be of benefit to the county as a whole.
7:11am Friday 23rd April 2010
CONSERVATIVE leader David Cameron made up ground on rival Nick Clegg following last night's second leaders' debate, according to pollsters.
2:28pm Wednesday 21st April 2010
CONSERVATIVE Party leader David Cameron was hit by an egg while he was campaigning today.
5:22pm Tuesday 20th April 2010
The following candidates have been named in the Witney constituency for the General Election on Thursday, May 6.
5:21pm Saturday 17th April 2010
AN EX-SOLDIER berated David Cameron for failing to help him today as the Conservative leader campaigned in Witney.
6:50am Saturday 17th April 2010
A GENERAL election challenger to David Cameron is one of many Oxfordshire residents stranded abroad because of the air travel lockdown.
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