What happened to the defeated candidates from this year’s General Election? Take a look here...

Dec 28 2010 by Barry Gibson, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

For a select few it was their proudest hour – when they learned they had won their fight to become an MP. But for the rest of the candidates in this year’s General Election, results night did not end with a job in Westminster. Local Government reporter BARRY GIBSON tracks down some of the failed candidates.

SHAHID MALIK was a man on the up.

The Labour man was elected to represent Dewsbury in Parliament in 2005, rising to the position of communities secretary – just one step short of the Cabinet.

However, a promising career stalled on May 6 when he was narrowly defeated by Conservative Simon Reevell.

But Mr Malik remains popular within Labour despite his loss.

The Burnley-born politician was tipped to throw his hat into the ring after an electoral court stripped Phil Woolas of his Oldham East and Saddleworth seat last month.

Mr Malik said: “When the initial court ruling came in a few weeks ago I had a lot of phone calls from party members in Oldham.

“They wanted me to put my name forward for the Oldham seat.

“I told them unequivocally that there was a judicial review underway. But even if there hadn’t been, I had no interest in the Oldham seat.”

Mr Malik appears to harbour ambitions to retake the Dewsbury seat which he lost by 1,500 votes.

He said: “I don’t know if I will stand again but if I do there’s every chance it will be for the seat I worked hard in for five years, for the people I respect in Dewsbury, Mirfield, Kirkburton and Denby Dale.”

But Mr Malik is vague about his living arrangements following May’s defeat.

“I’m both in the north and the south,” he said.

“The amount of time I spend in Dewsbury is much less for obvious reasons, but I was in the town for the Remembrance service.

“I’m splitting my time between Dewsbury, Burnley and London.”

Labour may not have got Mr Malik to stand in Oldham East and Saddleworth, but the party has selected another name familiar to Examiner readers.

On December 12 party members chose Debbie Abrahams to contest the by-election on January 13.

The Rochdale woman came third for Labour in Colne Valley in May.

She was beaten into second place by Lib Dem Clr Nicola Turner – one of three General Election candidates who remain members of Kirklees Council, along with Clr Andrew Cooper, who stood for the Greens in Huddersfield, and Clr Khizar Iqbal, an independent candidate in Dewsbury.

But she has not lost sight of her political ambitions, being chosen by Labour for that controversial Oldham East and Saddleworth seat .

Meanwhile, several other defeated candidates have their eyes on Kirklees – including James Blanchard, the Lib Dem who came third in Huddersfield.