Tories barely retain David Cameron's seat

The ruling Conservative Party saw a major fall in support but managed to hold on to former premier David Cameron’s seat in Oxfordshire.

The ruling Conservative Party saw a major fall in support but managed to hold on to former premier David Cameron’s seat in Oxfordshire, while Labour won overwhelming support in the seat held by former MP Jo Cox, who was killed during the EU referendum campaign.

Conservative candidate Robert Courts makes a speech after winning the Witney by-election on Friday. The Conservative Party retained the seat in Parliament vacated by former premier David Cameron but with a sharply reduced majority. (AP)

The two by-elections on Thursday were significant in the post-Brexit situation, and reflected new support for the Liberal Democrats, whose candidate finished second in Cameron's constituency of Witney, Oxfordshire, pushing Labour to third spot.

Conservative candidate Robert Courts polled 20,000 less votes than Cameron did in 2015, but won by 5,702 votes. The vote share of the Liberal Democrats in Witney rose from 7% to 30%, invigorating the party that was in the ruling coalition from 2010 to 2015.

Green candidate Larry Sanders - the brother of former Democrat presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders - came fourth with 3.5% of the vote.

Cameron stepped down as prime minister after Britons voted in the June 23 referendum to exit the European Union, and later resigned as the MP from Witney.

In Cox’s constituency of Batley and Spen, former Coronation Street star Tracy Brabin received 85% of the vote share after the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, UK Independence Party and the Green party did not put up candidates.

Brabin was one of 10 candidates in Batley and Spen, including some independents. The other nine candidates lost their £500 deposits because they did not receive a big enough share of the vote.