Jeremy Corbyn has retained his Islington North seat as an independent MP after he was expelled from Labour in May.

The former Labour leader, who presided over a shameful chapter in party history that was marred by allegations of antisemitism, defied expectations that he would lose the seat.

Corbyn led the charge of single-issue candidates who campaigned largely against Israel amid the ongoing war in Gaza.

Earlier in the day, Corbyn had taken to X/Twitter to make clear that he was basing his campaign not on local issues but on Israel.

"Today, Palestine is on the ballot (sic),” he wrote.

“If you re-elect me as an Independent MP in Islington North, I promise to always stand up for the people of Gaza, and for the only path to a just and lasting peace: an end to the occupation of Palestine.”

He was rewarded with victory, with supporters greeting the news with cries of “free Palestine”.

It came less than an hour after the Jewish community breathed a sigh of relief as George Galloway lost his set in Rochdale to former journalist Paul Waugh for Labour.

The Israel-Hamas war emerged as a key issue in both progressive and Muslim-dominated constituencies as the night wore on.

Voting data showed that the greater the number of Muslim residents in a constituency, the lower the support for Labour, which alienated these voters by showing support for Israel.

In Leicester South, Labour’s Jon Ashworth lost his seat in a surprise upset to independent candidate Shockat Adam, who campaigned largely about Gaza in the heavily Muslim constituency.

Wes Streeting, presumed to be the country’s next health secretary, almost lost his seat to Leanne Mohamad, winning 15,647 votes to her 15,119.

Yet it was not all bad news. We Believe in Israel Director Luke Akehurst, who for years has been a strongly Zionist voice, was elected as the new Member of Parliament for North Durham.