ANGUS Robertson has been elected the SNP’s deputy leader with an emphatic mandate.

The Moray MP, who is already SNP group leader at Westminster, was victorious on the first round of voting with a 52.5 per cent share of the ballot of party members.

His closest rival was MP Tommy Sheppard, who secured 25.5 per cent, followed by MEP Alyn Smith (18.6 per cent) and Inverclyde councillor Chris McEleny (3.4 per cent).

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The result of the depute leadership contest was the first item of business on the first day of the SNP conference in Glasgow on Thursday.

Addressing delegates at the Clyde Auditorium after the declaration, Mr Robertson said he would deliver on his campaign themes: leadership, the party grassroots and independence.

He said: “We are very, very close to independence and we must start campaigning now to persuade people. Forty-five per cent in the independence referendum was a great  achievement but we must reach out to the 55 per cent who voted No in the 2014 campaign.”

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He said it was fitting that the SNP was now led by an urban MSP in Nicola Sturgeon in Holyrood with a rural MP in Westminster as her deputy.

“We are the Scottish National party. We represent the whole of the country, regardless of where you come from and we should never forget that.”

He said he wanted to work with his rivals - on Mr Sheppard’s plans for internal reform, Mr Smith’s focus on Europe, and Mr McEleny’s prioritisation of the 2017 council elections.

He also thanked his wife Jennifer Dempsie for helping with his campaign.

Nicola Sturgeon said Mr Robertson would be an “outstanding” deputy.

She said: “We had four first class candidates to choose from. We had more quality in our race for deputy than Labour managed in its election for leader.”

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Mr Robertson replaces Stewart Hosie, who resigned from the depute leadership post in the spring after it was revealed he had been having an affair with former actress Serena Cowdry.

Mr Hosie also split from his wife, the health secretary Shona Robison, at the time.