Labour are celebrating huge wins over the Tories in Kent, with the Lib Dems also picking up their first ever seat in the county.

The victories come amid a Labour landslide nationally - putting Keir Starmer in Downing Street with a huge majority - as the Conservatives haemorrhage votes amid a surge in support for Reform.

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One new MP in the county has described the events overnight as a “political earthquake”.

In Kent, Labour have won 11 seats, the Conservatives have kept hold of six and the Lib Dems have gained one.

Who are Kent’s new MPs? Click here to learn more

It means the Tories have lost in 10 seats in the county they previously held - and even came third in Dover, with Reform finishing second.

The first result was announced in previously true blue Folkestone and Hythe, where the Conservatives and Damian Collins had enjoyed a majority of 21,337.

Labour’s Tony Vaughan secured the win, beating the incumbent by 3,729 votes.

Mr Vaughan told KentOnline: "There are so many issues and people are sick to death of the way things are. Things got so bad to the point they knew things had to change.

"People have voted for change. Even people who wouldn't normally vote Labour have got behind us.”

In Gravesham, Labour’s Lauren Sullivan ousted Conservative Adam Holloway, polling 2,712 more votes, and in East Thanet Labour’s Polly Billington secured a resounding win, securing a majority of 6,971 over Tory candidate Helen Harrison.

In other gains for Labour over the Tories, Naushabah Khan ousted Rehman Chisti in Gillingham and Rainham, Jim Dickson narrowly defeated Tory Gareth Johnson in Dartford, and Tristan Osborne saw off Nathan Gamester in Chatham and Aylesford.

In Ashford, veteran Tory Damian Green was also defeated, losing by 1,779 votes to Labour’s Sojan Joseph.

The Conservatives were even pushed into third in Dover and Deal by Howard Cox standing for Reform UK, with Labour’s Mike Tapp running out a comfortable winner.

Speaking before the results were revealed, Mr Cox said he was “over the moon” with how his party was performing.

Labour have also won in Rochester and Strood, with Conservative Kelly Tolhurst losing out to Lauren Edwards.

In Tunbridge Wells, Mike Martin pulled off a seismic win and secured the Lib Dems’ first ever Kent seat, polling almost 10,000 more votes than Tory candidate Neil Mahapatra.

Mr Martin told us: "We are standing in the aftermath of a political earthquake. Tunbridge Wells has had a Conservative member of parliament for 114 years - but no more.

"This earthquake, epicentre Tunbridge Wells, reverberates across the country.”

Labour have also claimed victory in Sittingbourne and Sheppey, with Kevin McKenna narrowly beating Tory Aisha Cuthbert by 426 votes.

Conservative Laura Trott has managed to hold on to her seat in Sevenoaks, retaining a sizable majority, with Labour’s Rosie Duffield doing the same in Canterbury.

While the Tories have suffered heavy losses, it has not been a complete wipeout.

Helen Whately has clung on to the Faversham and Mid-Kent constituency, defeating Labour’s Mel Dawkins by 1,513 votes.

Fellow Conservative Helen Grant has kept her seat in Maidstone & Malling and Katie Lam has won for the Tories in the new Weald of Kent constituency.

Tory Tom Tugendhat has been re-elected in Tonbridge.

The final result to be declared was in Herne Bay & Sandwich with veteran Conservative Sir Roger Gale holding on to his seat.

While the Conservatives had a disappointing night, one senior Tory councillor says it could have been worse.

Neil Baker, KCC’s cabinet member for transport was speaking at the Canterbury count, where he was an election agent for Conservative candidate Louise Harvey-Quirke.

“I don't think it's a secret that we were expecting a bad night of results for the Conservatives,” he said.

“I was personally prepared for a sub-100 seat total, so I'm not going to pretend it's a good result, but it could have been even worse.

“I remember being here in 2017 when Labour won Canterbury for the first time, and at the time it was the longest seat held by one party in the country.

“Politics is a pendulum - tonight Labour are going to have it swinging their way, but at some point it will swing back.

“It won't be tomorrow, it might not be the next general election, but it will be in the future.”

The election campaign that began 43 days ago, when Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced the country would go to the polls on July 4.

Within three weeks 122 candidates across Kent were staking their claim to be one of the county’s 18 MPs - up from 17 following the creation of the new Weald of Kent constituency.

Five incumbent Tory MPs chose not to stand again, including South Thanet’s Craig Mackinlay, who believed an election campaign would impact his recovery from a sepsis battle that saw him lose his arms and legs.

Gordon Henderson, Tracey Crouch, Greg Clark and Natalie Elphicke also bowed out, with the latter revealing she would not seek re-election following her shock defection to Labour.

All five major parties put up a candidate in every constituency.

Many attended hustings across the county, including four in Medway and Canterbury that were live-streamed on KentOnline through KMTV.

KentOnline has been bringing you updates throughout the night and into the morning on our live blog, while KMTV has been broadcasting live from all 18 counts.

FULL RESULTS FROM EVERY CONSTITUENCY