Angus Robertson, once the SNP Westminster leader, lost his seat in Edinburgh Central by a wide margin to Scottish Greens former co-leader, Lorna Slater.
Robertson said that he really will now be delighted to spend more time at home with his wife and daughters, but it is clearly a major blow for the former MP and MSP.
He was last unseated by Douglas Ross in Moray in 2017 in the Westminster election, and came back to politics straight into Nicola Sturgeon’s cabinet.
This time round he offered his heartfelt congratulations to his “fellow progressive candidate” Lorna Slater who defeated him by 12,680 votes to 7,702.
Lorna Slater said: “Thank you to everyone who voted Scottish Greens yesterday. Thank you for your trust in me, and your trust in our vision for a fairer and greener Scotland.
“Scottish Greens have been part of The Scottish Parliament since it was reconvened. Today we have reached a significant milestone of winning our first constituency.”
She continued: “We are hopeful of returning the largest ever number of Green MSPs to Holyrood today, as voters choose to vote Green all over Scotland. I can’t wait to get back to work.”
Lorna told The Edinburgh Reporter her victory was testament to the decades of hard work of the volunteers. She said: “This is building on the hard work they have done as well as an amazing campaign run by our volunteers. I think this is the next step for the Scottish Greens and it shows that people in Edinburgh Central really want a fairer and greener Scotland.”
Mr Robertson said: “It has been an honour to represent Edinburgh Central for the last five years, and its diverse community, including Stockbridge where I grew up and went to school.
“Over the last five years it has also been a tremendous honour to serve as the Scottish Government for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture. Edinburgh is the beating heart of Edinburgh’s culture, arts and festivals. I am proud to have introduced multi-year funding changes to the sector, and to have worked with ScreenScotland, help film and television become a £1 billion annual industry.
“It is my sincere hope that these and many other positive SNP achievements will help our go from strength to strength at home and abroad.”
He told journalists: “I think in a democracy that it is really important that we are good losers if we dont win. I think we have to recognise the victory of the Scottish Green Party in Edinburgh Central is historic. I am sure Lorna will go on to represent Edinburgh Central well.”
He continued: “I think that one of the issues that certainly has played a role in the SNP not holding the seat with changed boundaries is the relative turnout.”
Sadly Bonnie Prince Bob, despite his harsh criticism of Mr Robertson at one of the hustings, only attracted 176 votes himself, but he rewarded those who did vote for him by recording selfie videos on the stage.
Candidates in the constituency:
BONNIE PRINCE, Bob – Independent 176
CREIGHTON, Chris – Independent 32
DALGLEISH, James William – Scottish Labour Party 8,098
DUNDAS, Charles – Scottish Liberal Democrats 2,168
LAIRD, Tam – Scottish Libertarian Party 56
MOWAT, Jo – Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party 2,262
MURRAY, Craig John – Alliance to Liberate Scotland 150
NEILL, Gary – Reform UK 1,876
POWNALL, Robert Neil – Independent 41
ROBERTSON, Angus – Scottish National Party (SNP) 7,702
SLATER, Lorna – Scottish Green Party 12,360
