The results are in, the people of Britain have spoken, and Prime Minister David Cameron will keep his job at the top and his belongings at No.10.
What was predicted to be one of the closest contested battles in recent political history, the Conservatives won a ‘slender’ majority in the House of Commons at 331 seats.
They were then followed by Labour, who won 232 seats. Leader Ed Miliband described election night as ‘disappointing’ to the party, who lost several seats.
Labour lost nearly all of their seats north of the border in Scotland- except one- where SNP won 56 seats out of 59.
The Liberal Democrats had a disappointing night, too, finishing with 8 seats. This is a stark contrast to the 2010 General Election where they made monumental gains across the country. Leader Nick Clegg managed to keep his seat at Sheffield Hallam but described election night as ‘cruel and punishing’ for his party.
The Green Party held on to their seat in Brighton, but failed to win a single other seat elsewhere in the UK.
Welsh party Plaid Cymru won three seats in total.
Controversial UKIP won 12% of the overall vote but gained just one seat, prompting calls for electoral reform amongst many of their supporters.
Many people have been left upset by the election results, with fears over the future of the NHS and an inevitable EU referendum- not to mention a possible SECOND referendum on Scottish independence- but what do the election results ACTUALLY mean?
A second term for the Tories means that they will ‘get on with the work we started five years ago’. This means tackling the deficit with austerity and inevitable cuts that will no doubt affect many families up and down the country.
Encouraging investment from abroad and focusing on creating jobs is another promise that the Tories have outlined in their manifesto. They will also focus on building a ‘northern power house’ in their mission to improve the economy.
One of the first tasks for David Cameron to attend to when he gets ‘back to work’ on Monday is addressing the election results in Scotland and Wales. An overwhelming vote for SNP- a party which is famously anti-Tory- will make it difficult for Westminster to ignore demands for devolved powers. Where Scotland goes, Wales will inevitably follow as they also seek more control over their own affairs.
The next few days will involve Cameron attempting to build a stable government, after that it is simply a case of finding out whether or not the MPs that YOU voted for can keep their promises.
UPDATE
Leader of the Liberal Democrats Nick Clegg, Labour leader Ed Miliband and UKIP leader Nigel Farage ahve resigned following the outcome of the election. The parties will now have to vote for a replacement.
Former SNP Alex Salmond- who has now won a seat at Westminster- told BBC's Jeremy Paxman that the party will not join a coalition with the Tories in order for them to win an overall majority.
Leader of the Conservatives David Cameron arrived at Buckingham Palace to speak to the Queen once the final votes had been counted.