Three Nigerians Win Parliamentary Seats in UK
Three out of five Nigerians, Chuka Ummuna, Helen Grant and Chi Onwurah, who contested in the United Kingdom general elections on Thursday, have emerged victorious winning seats in the British parliament.
Ummuna, who contested on the platform of the Labour Party, won the constituency seat for Streatham with 20,037 votes (42.8 per cent), beating Chris Nicholson, a Liberal Democrat with 16,778 votes (35.8 per cent), Rahoul Bhansali of the Conservative Party with 8,578 votes (18.3 per cent), Rebecca Findlay of the Green Party with 861 votes (1.8 per cent), and Geoffrey Macharia of Christian Party with 237 votes (0.5 per cent).
Ummuna, who was born and bred in Steatham, is well known in his community and generally referred to as 'the UK Obama'.
Prior to becoming Labour's parliamentary candidate in Streatham, Ummuna was Vice Chair of Streatham Labour Party from 2004 to 2008 and had held a variety of positions throughout the local party. He is a member of the GMB and Unite trade unions and sits on the management committee of progressive pressure group, Compass
"I know our party will do everything we can for the residents of this fantastic place," Ummuna said after emerging victorious on Friday.
Grant, born in London in 1962, of a Nigerian father and British mother, has become Conservative Party's first black female Member of Parliament. She secured the seat for Maidstone and the Weald constituency with 23,491 votes (48.0 per cent), beating second and third runner-ups Peter Carroll, a Liberal Democrat, who garnered 17,602 votes (36.0 per cent) and Rav Seeruthun of Labour with 4,769 (9.7 per cent).
Also, Onwurah, won the Newcastle Central seat as a Labour Party candidate. Onwurah secured the parliamentary seat with 15,692 votes (45.9 per cent), beating Gareth Kane, a Liberal Democrat with 8,228 votes (24.1 per cent), and Conservative's Nick Holder with 6,611 votes (19.4 per cent).
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Two Nigerians, Abiodun Akinoshun and Kemi Adegoke, who also vied in the 2010 UK general polls lost to other candidates. Akinoshun contested for the Erith and Thamesmead parliamentary seat as an independent candidate. He got 438 votes, losing to Labour candidate, Teresa Pearce, who got 19,068 votes. Adegoke who contested as a Conservative for the Dulwich and West Norwood parliamentary seat lost with 10,684 votes (22.2 per cent) to Labour candidate Tessa Jowell, who scored 22,461 votes (46.6 per cent).
Meanwhile, the general results for the Thursday election in UK shows the Tories are leading, but far from clinching the required number of seats to form a government.
Despite winning the largest number of House of Commons seats in the poll, David Cameron's Conservatives fell short of a majority that only a few months ago was considered inevitable.
allafrica.com
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