A TRIUMPHANT night for the Conservative Party nationwide was mirrored in Oxfordshire as its candidates were delighted to increase their majorities in every seat they held.

Nicola Blackwood, David Cameron, John Howell and Ed Vaizey all won by a bigger margin than in 2010.

And in Banbury, new MP Victoria Prentis who lives in Somerton, secured 168 votes more than her predecessor Sir Tony Baldry five years ago.

On a bad night for the Labour Party, Oxford East MP Andrew Smith bucked the trend by winning 25,356 votes, a majority of 15,280, to remain the only non-Tory MP in the county.

His increased majority, up from 4,581 in 2010, came at the end of a difficult campaign for Mr Smith, whose wife Val has been battling cancer for several months.

He said: “I want to thank Val, without whom everything I have achieved in politics would not have been possible. Thank you, Val, the dream lives on.”

The Liberal Democrats had high hopes of winning back Oxford West and Abingdon, which Nicola Blackwood won by just 176 votes in 2010.

But the mood among the party’s activists at the count in Abingdon plummeted when exit polls suggested only 10 Lib Dem MPs would hold their seats across Britain.

Despite a high-profile campaign by Lib Dem candidate Layla Moran, she polled just 16,571 votes, leaving Ms Blackwood to secure a majority of almost 10,000.

The victorious Conservative MP said: “We had a hard-fought campaign in this area and I am very grateful that constituents trusted in me.”

Despite being held by the Lib Dems between 1997 and 2010, Ms Blackwood’s result means the constituency has now become a Tory stronghold.

David Cameron, John Howell and Ed Vaizey were all expected to comfortably hold their seats, but in a reflection of a Conservative performance which surpassed all expectations – at one point a hung parliament was 16/1 on with bookmakers – all three increased their majorities.

Mr Cameron won 35,201 votes to increase by more than 1,000 his majority in Witney (25,155) while Mr Vaizey won 31,092 votes and increased his majority to more than 22,000 after the Lib Dem vote collapsed.

But it was Henley MP John Howell who saw the biggest increase in his majority, which rose from 16,588 in 2010 to 25,365 this time around.

In another result that highlighted the collapse of the Lib Dem vote around the country, the party dropped to third place, with Labour finishing second in the constituency for the first time since 1970.

Mr Howell said: “I feel quite emotional but I have just massively increased my majority.”

New Banbury MP Victoria Prentis – who was born at the Horton General Hospital – admitted she had a hard act to follow after she was elected to a seat held by Sir Tony Baldry for 32 years.

But she too increased her party’s majority, winning 30,749 votes.

It was also election day across the districts with voters going to the polls in Vale of White Horse, South Oxfordshire, Cherwell and West Oxfordshire.

In Cherwell, the Tories increased their presence in the district council by one councillor, winning 14 of the 17 seats available, while Labour won two and independent candidate Les Sibley retained his seat.

The sea of blue washed over West Oxfordshire District Council with the Tories winning 16 out of 17 seats yesterday, meaning they control 39 of the total 48 available on the council.

The Lib Dems also gained one seat but Labour lost out in Chipping Norton.

The Tories also dominated in the Vale of White Horse where the party won an overall majority.

The Conservatives produced another strong performance in South Oxfordshire, where they kept their grip on the council.