Suella Braverman says 'sorry' after winning seat as she eyes up leadership bid
The former Home Secretary was battling to win the newly-created Fareham and Waterlooville constituency.
Suella Braverman has won her Fareham and Waterlooville seat in a General Election boost for the Tories.
The former home secretary had been fighting to be re-elected in the new constituency in Hampshire following changes to parliamentary boundaries.
Mrs Braverman, seen as a likely Tory leadership contender, won the seat with a majority of just over 6,000.
In an emotional victory speech, she said she was sorry her party "didn't listen'' to the British people and had "let you down''.
She said: "I want to briefly address the result in the rest of the country and there is only one thing that I can say - sorry. I'm sorry.
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"I'm sorry that my party didn't listen to you. (The) Conservative Party has let you down. You - the Great British people voted for us over 14 years and we did not keep our promises. We've acted as if we're entitled to your vote regardless of what we did, regardless of what we didn't do, despite promising time after time that we would do those things and we need to learn our lesson because if we don't, bad as tonight has been for my party, we'll have many worse nights to come.
"The country deserves better and we've got to do better and I will do everything in my power to rebuild trust. We need to listen to you - you have spoken to us very clearly."
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Labour's Gemma Furnivall cam second in the contest with 11,482 votes, ahead of Reform UK's candidate Kevan Chippindall-Higgin and the Liberal Democrat opponent Bella Hewitt.
Mrs Braverman, a darling of the Tory right, was sacked as by Rishi Sunak after she defied No 10 over an article accusing the Metropolitan Police of bias in the policing of pro-Palestine protests.
Fareham and Waterlooville results
Conservative, Suella Braverman
17,561
Labour, Gemma Furnivall
11,482
Liberal Democrat, Bella Hewitt
9,533
Reform UK, Kevan Chippindall-Higgin
9,084
Green, Baz Marie
2,036
Hampshire Independents, Robert Holliday
217
Rejoin EU, Edward Dean
210
