ELECTION 2017 DAVENTRY: Tory candidate says exit polls '˜does not chime with doorstep talk'

The poll indicates that the Conservatives will be the largest party but will not have a majority.

This means we could end up with a hung parliament similar to the one seen in the 2010 General Election, which led to a coalition government.

The exit poll is by no means definite, so the Tories could yet end the count with a majority.

Speaking at the Daventry count, the Conservative candidate Chris Heaton-Harris said it was too early to comment on the poll.

“It does look like the UKIP vote is splitting between the Conservatives and Labour,” said Mr Heaton-Harris.

“What I’ve heard on the doorstep isn’t chiming with the exit poll.”

Aiden Ramsey, Daventry’s Labour candidate said the exit poll’s projection was somewhat unexpected, but that he had had interactions with people in the constituency who said they had voted Tory their whole life, but were considering a change.

“I’ve met UKIP voters and Green Party voters who said they would vote Labour this election.

“I might have to tell my boss I’ve got a new job on Monday,” said Mr Ramsey.

The Liberal Democrats look set to increase their amount of seats by six, giving them 14 in total but should the voting result in a hung parliament, the Lib Dems have ruled out joining forces with another party.

A Lib Dem party representative said it was all speculation at this point but it did look as if the smaller parties were being squeezed out.

“I think it has turned back into a two party state. Either way it’s very different to what people expected.”

The exit poll puts the SNP on 34, Plaid Cymru on three, the Green Party on one, and has UKIP losing its only seat. Other parties will account for 18 seats between them.

Reacting to the poll, Daventry’s Green Party candidate, Jamie Wildman, said a lot of unexpected things had happened in British politics in recent years, and if the poll is accurate, the result of this election would continue that trend.

UKIP’s Ian Gibbins was also surprised at the exit poll, believing Mrs May might have underestimated the power of the grey vote when announcing her ‘dementia tax’, which she was forced to backtrack on.