General Election 2017 : Robert Jenrick re-elected as Newark MP but Conservatives fall short of overall majority

Conservative candidate Robert Jenrick has been re-elected as Newark's MP - but Theresa May's Tories have fallen short of an overall majority.

Standing for Newark for a third time, Mr Jenrick polled 34,493 votes - 4,659 votes more than he gained in the last General Election.

Labour's Chantal Lee finished second with 16,344 votes; Liberal Democrat David Watts was third with 2,786 and UKIP candidate Xandra Arundel finished fourth with 1,419 votes.

Mr Jenrick was first elected as Newark's MP in a by-election held in 2014.

Turnout in the Newark constituency was 73.09%.

Nationally, the result was a disaster for Prime Minister Theresa May. Her hopes of building a commanding majority have been dashed as Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party exceeded expectations to force a hung Parliament.

The Conservatives are predicted to finish on 318 seats, while Labour are likely to end up with 262 seats.

On a night of surprises, former SNP leader Alex Salmond and ex-Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg both lost their seats.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd survived a scare to hold on to her Hastings seat by just 346 votes from Labour's Peter Chowney.

Elsewhere in the Advertiser area, the Conservatives' Mark Spencer will again serve as Sherwood's MP. He gained 27,492 votes, ahead of Labour's Mike Pringle on 22,294 votes.

Other candidates: Stuart Bestwick (UKIP) 1,801 votes; Becky Thomas (Liberal Democrats (1,113 votes); Morris Findley (Gren Party) 664 votes.

In Rushcliffe, Conservative Ken Clarke once again claimed victory. He polled 30,223 votes, ahead of Labour's David Mellen with 22,213 votes.

Other candidates: Jayne Phoenix (Liberal Democrat) 2,759 votes; George Mallender (Green) 1,626 votes; Matthew Faithfull (UKIP) 1,490 votes.