ON A night of mixed fortunes for the Conservatives, Maria Caulfield has quintupled her majority in one of the least defensible seats in the country.

Lewes, birthplace of Liberal giant Tom Paine, was proud to return Lib Dem Norman Baker for almost 20 years before former nurse Ms Caulfield took the seat from under him in 2015 in a whirlwind of disapproval for his party’s policies in Coalition.

Tonight despite the Green party standing aside in favour of Liberal Democrat candidate Kelly-Marie Blundell, the Conservatives held the seat with just shy of 50 per cent of the vote.

Ms Blundell told The Argus that Brexit had been a big factor in the campaign.

The absence of a UKIP candidate may have helped Brexiteer Ms Caulfield despite large parts of her constituency having voted solidly Remain.

But Ms Caulfield’s election agent Luke Proudfoot pointed out that at county council elections last month, the disintegrated UKIP vote went “absolutely everywhere, not just to us.”

And Ms Caulfield’s partner - and senior Conservative veteran of national campaigns - Cllr Steve Bell, said adult social care had been the hot-button issue.

He said: “We never issued any Brexit literature, I never saw this as a Brexit election.

“The biggest thing on the doorstep was adult social care.

“Once the manifesto came out we decided we would have to explain in full detail what the details were within the manifesto, and that’s what we did.

“We took that to the doorstep and spoke to everyone over 65, and we literally went around and engaged with them and spoke to their concerns.”

Maria Caulfield, returned as MP with a majority of more than 5,500 votes, dedicated her win to county council election candidate Paul Gander who died on Wednesday, saying: “Paul was a big bundle of fun, a real character, and this win is for you Paul.”

The turnout, at 76.58 per cent, was the highest in more than 20 years. Multiple sources attributed the figure to an increased level of engagement among an electorate who have been asked their opinion with unusual frequency in recent years.