BEN Lake defied the blue tide that swept across much of the UK as the Plaid Cymru man retained his Ceredigion parliamentary seat.

And while at the last General Election in 2017 he crept over the finish line by 104 votes, this time his victory was much more emphatic, with a majority of 6,329 over Tory rival Amanda Jenner, much to the delight of his supporters when the result was declared at just before 3.30am at Aberaeron Leisure Centre.

Mr Lake polled 15,208 votes, up nearly nine per cent on the previous election, with his nearest rival on 8,879.

Former MP Mark Williams saw the Liberal Democrat vote (6,975) collapse on the back of another disastrous showing nationwide as they came home in third, ahead of Labour’s Dinah Mulholland (6,317), James Gethin (Brexit, 2,063) and Chris Simpson (Green Party, 663), who lost his deposit.

It was a night of triumph for Plaid but not before a few early jitters in the face of early Tory optimism.

As the count progressed, it soon became clear that Mr Lake was on course for victory and the tension and excitement of the previous poll, which saw two recounts, was never on the cards this time around.

But while pleased to hang on to his seat, the success of the Tory party at UK level tempered Mr Lake’s celebrations.

“This campaign has been tougher than the first one,” he said, after thanking all those who had supported him. “I will be returning to Westminster looking to repay the faith and trust people have shown in me.

“Not only has it been a winter election in challenging conditions, but Brexit has been a massive issue on the doorstep and a divisive one.

“I am aware of the many people who disagree with my party’s stance but they have been nothing but courteous when I have spoken with them and that is to people’s credit. I have had some challenging discussions and that is all you can ask for.

“I have a mixture of emotions on winning – both of relief and elation but also real trepidation.

“Parliament will be completely different to the last one, with what looks like a big majority for the Tories who will look to push through a lot of their policies.

“How do we hold them to account? The last thing we need is an executive that will steamrollers everything through and it will involve cross-party working.

“There is a huge challenge ahead as I look to represent the best interests of Ceredigion at Westminster.”

Conservative candidate Amanda Jenner said the rise in the Tory vote showed that Ceredigion could no longer be consider a two-party constituency and that her success boded well for the future.

“Obviously a lot hinged around Brexit but I think there are a lot of people here who are Conservatives but have never felt that there is a place for them before,” she said.

“We knocked on doors of people who said they have never been canvassed by the Tory party before especially in the south of the county and I think we can build on that in the future.”

It was an awful night for the Liberal Democrats as their failure on the national scale was reflected in Ceredigion, where they had held high hopes of regaining the seat at the start of the campaign.

Mark Williams said: “It is important that people have a choice and we have done that in the most difficult of circumstances.

“I am genuinely worried for the country at UK level with a large Tory majority. Their track record has not been helpful to us in the past.

“I congratulate Ben on his victory. We are friends and I wish him well. He has done a good job in Parliament for the last couple of years and we need him to stand up in Westminster because we face a terrible, terrible time as the country heads to Brexit.

“As for me, I shall still be involved in local issues as a resident of Ceredigion.”

Labour’s Dinah Mulholland said: “We had a really positive response from people on the doorstep and especially among the young people and I look at what has happened and think it is a generational thing.”

Brexit Party candidate Gethin James said: “It has been difficult for us and since Boris Johnson has been Prime Minister, he has stolen our thunder. A lot of the policies I stood for in 2015 under the UKIP banner are now in the Tory manifesto.”

Chris Simpson, for the Green Party, said: “The Brexit issue over-rode the argument for a lot of people but I am sure that the people who voted for me, then climate change is their number one concern.”

Full result:

Ben Lake (PC) 15,208 (37.92%, +8.69%)

Amanda Jenner (C) 8,879 (22.14%, +3.76%)

Mark Williams (LD) 6,975 (17.39%, -11.57%)

Dinah Mulholland (Lab) 6,317 (15.75%, -4.41%)

Gethin James (Brexit) 2,063 (5.14%)

Chris Simpson (Green) 663 (1.65%, +0.29%)

Plaid Cymru majority 6,329 (15.78%)

Electorate 56,250; Turnout 40,105 (71.30%, -3.89%)