It was clear that a decisive win in Stoke-on-Trent was very important to Keir Starmer. In the weeks running up to the election, the Labour party poured a huge amount of resources into its campaign in the city, and its leader visited multiple times.
High-profile MPs such as the Birmingham MP Jess Phillips and the shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, were drafted in for door-knocking in the final hours before polls closed. The candidates had been chosen early to given them maximum time for campaigning.
