Adamson and Thomson consider campaigning again in future

Two of the candidates standing in the Holyrood by-election say the experience has given them a greater hunger for national politics.

Labour candidate Johan Adamson says she would be keen to stand in a snap Westminster General Election.

Meanwhile, independent candidate Ryan Thomson says he hopes the evening could “build a foundation” for him to stand in the Scotland-wide elections in 18 months time.

Both have admitted that they struggled to persuade voters not to vote tactically.

Ms Adamson said: “I think the campaign went well – I’ve done what I could. We hope to improve on our vote from the last time, although it’s difficult with 10 candidates.”

She added: “I hope people have voted as they wanted to, rather than tactically.”

Labour has faced criticism in the past over its stance on Brexit, But Ms Adamson said Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn’s offer to lead a temporary government had served her well on the doorsteps.

“He is doing something on the remain side,” she said.

Asked if campaigning had given her a taste for a career in politics, she said: “If there’s a snap UK General Election I’d hope to end up fighting for the Orkney and Shetland constituency for Westminster.”

Mr Thomson said he had received positive feedback on the doorsteps.

“The biggest challenge is people saying that they’d like to vote for me, but they’re choosing to vote tactically. It’s trying to convince people to vote with their hearts and vote with their heads. That’s been the biggest challenge.”

Asked what he was hoping for at the end of the night, he said: “I hope it’s respectable. I hope I get a respectable result.

“I’m hoping to push the big two – the Liberal Democrats and the SNP – as much as I can.

“Depending on what I get, I’ll see if I can possibly build a foundation for going again in 18 months.”