Results announced overnight showed broker Thornton had triumphed for the Liberal Democrats in the by election yesterday, despite strong competition from UKIP’s Diane James and Conservative candidate Maria Hutchings.
He garnered 13,342 votes in the contest, compared to James’ 11,571 and 10,559 for Hutchings.
Thornton had been working as a broker at Southampton-based Simply Finance and had also been a councillor since 2007.
Thornton told BBC News that he would be looking to use his skills from the mortgage industry to attract more business to his new constituency.
“The people of Eastleigh recognise that the Liberal Democrats have always had a superb record of delivery, we’ve always listened to what people want, and we always make sure that we do a good job.”
“I have a business background, so my main focus will be to bring investment, like we have in Eastleigh, and see how we can scale that up to the country.”
The parliamentary seat became available when former government minister Chris Huhne resigned his position after pleading guilty to perverting the course of justice.
