Jamie Stone has held on to the Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross seat for the surging Lib Dems.
It was a far more comfortable evening for the veteran politician, who only held on in 2019 by a margin of 204 votes.
It was the SNP who were his main competition once again – but this time the party’s candidate Lucy Beattie fell short by a 10,489 margin.
The constituency is the largest in the UK by geography, stretching from the far north coast as far south as Beauly – a distance of more than 115 miles.
Mr Stone has been the area’s MP since 2017.
Labour’s Eva Kestner finished in third with 3,409 votes and Reform’s Sandra Skinner was fourth with 3,360.
‘Edinburgh is not delivering and the Tory government ran out of steam’
Mr Stone said he was “gobsmacked” to win by such a large majority after such a narrow success last time out.
He said: “I’m humbled by the sense of trust that so many people have put in me.
“That invigorates me to say ‘right, we’ve got to get education sorted, we need to get health a whole lot better than it is.
“I now have the voice in Westminster to really go for it.”
Mr Stone said the results pouring in across the UK were evidence that big changes are needed.
“People are saying ‘we are scunnered with this’,” he said. “Edinburgh is not delivering. And in London, the Tory government has run out of steam.
“In a functioning democracy, people will eventually say we’ve have had enough and we’re telling you now ‘go in the name of god, go’.
“That’s what has happened here and I believe it will happen in two years in Edinburgh.”
Sweeping changes
Although this constituency has retained the same name, it has been subject to the same sweeping changes as its neighbours.
Previously, it only stretched as far south as Alness.
It now includes the Black Isle and goes as far south as Kiltarlity.
The SNP’s Paul Monaghan won the seat for his party in 2015 – one of a slew of MPs for the surging nationalists that year.
But Mr Stone, who has served as a Holyrood MSP and a Highland councillor, won it back for the Lib Dems by a 2,000 vote margin in 2017.
In December 2019, the SNP’s Karl Rosie was extremely close to winning it back but ultimately fell short.
The far north has been a stronghold for the Lib Dems for a number of years and few were expecting Mr Stone to be beaten.
Lord Thurso served as the area’s MP for 14 years before his defeat to Mr Monaghan in 2015.
Conversation