RISHI SUNAK continued his run of by-election misery as the Tories were comprehensively defeated in the Blackpool South poll.

Labour’s Chris Webb took the seat on a 26 per cent swing, the third-largest in a post-war by-election.

Just as worrying for the Conservatives, their candidate was only a whisper ahead of the right-wing insurgent Reform party in third place.

The Tory vote fell from 50 per cent in 2019 to just 17.5 per cent, little more than 100 votes ahead of Reform.

Labour’s 59 per cent mirrors recent by-election landslides across the country, albeit on a very low turnout of less than 33 per cent. 

The Blackpool South poll followed the resignation of MP Scott Benson amid a lobbying scandal.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said today that Blackpool’s result showed it was time for Mr Sunak to quit.

“Here in Blackpool, a message has been sent directly to the Prime Minister to say we’re fed up with your decline, your chaos of your division and we want change,” he said.

“That wasn’t just a little message. That wasn’t just a murmur. That was a shout from Blackpool. We want to change.

“And Blackpool speaks for the whole country in saying we’ve had enough now, after 14 years of failure, 14 years of decline.”

Reform leader Richard Tice was scarcely less triumphalist.

“We are delighted with our best Reform vote to date, way above our national polling average,” he said.

“We are rapidly becoming the real opposition to Labour in the north and Midlands as the socialist Tories sink in the polls. Onwards and upwards.”