On Friday (today), Malta-born Kevin Bonavia secured a seat at the House of Commons after being elected as a Labour candidate for Stevenage, Knebworth, Codicote, Datchworth and Aston.
In his first speech following the win, Dr Bonavia remarked that it is the “honour of his life” to be elected.
“In our town and our villages, we ran a campaign of hope. We sent a clear message that regardless of who you supported in the past, choose Labour this time, and we’ll deliver the change that you need,” he said.
In total, Kevin Bonavia won 17,698 votes turning Stevenage red for the first time since 2010. Additionally, this is the first time since 2005 that a Labour Member of Parliament (MP) was elected in Stevenage.
Dr Bonavia was born and partially raised in Malta with a working-class background.
In an interview with The Comet, he shared that while he was born on the islands, his family moved to the UK when he was eight years old.
Following that, his father worked as a taxi driver and eventually, with his mother, they started their own businesses. First a café and then a video rental store.
Sharing more memories from his time in Malta, Dr Bonavia stated that one of his jobs during his youth was helping his father rent umbrellas and boats on the beach in Malta.
After completing university – during which he joined Labour - he started his career as a litigator, specialising in cases involving fraud. In recent years he specialised in fraud related to phone hacking.
During this election, Labour secured a substantial majority in the 650-seat Parliament, ending the 14-year Conservative rule.
In total, Labour won 410 seats, the Conservatives 117 seats, and the Liberal Democrats 70 seats. This means that a number of senior ministers as well as former Prime Minister Liz Truss among others, have lost their seat.
