VOTERS across Hampshire today sent the Prime Minister a resounding message in the local elections.

Gordon Brown is now facing a fight for his political life after suffering a severe blow as the election results showed a bad day for his Government.

The results came just hours after another Cabinet member decided to quit.

In Hampshire Labour came bottom of all the polls carried out in Eastleigh and the New Forest.

In Fareham they even trailed behind the Greens and UKIP managing to keep off the bottom of the poll in just one ward.

That was by fending off the BNP candidate by just 53 votes.

Fareham, the New Forest and Eastleigh were three of only a handful of districts to count the results from the Hampshire County Council election yesterday.

The rest of the area will count their votes this morning revealing the results for the Tory run authority this afternoon.

ELECTION RESULTS

Eastleigh Results in Full

New Forest Results in Full

Fareham Results in Full

But the early results show that the Conservatives were heading for a resounding victory to retain control.

Across the count the Labour Party suffered a series of defeats losing seats in Bristol, Bedfordshire and Lincolnshire.

Meanwhile Minister James Purnell dramatically quit last night and urged Mr Brown to stand down as PM for the good of the Labour Party.

Mr Purnell gave the PM only moments' notice of his bombshell departure, announced in an open letter published in the media as polls closed in crucial council and European elections.

The Work and Pensions Secretary became the fifth minister to resign in three days, the leading Blairite plunged the Government deeper into crisis by saying that Mr Brown's removal was needed to give Labour ''a fighting chance'' of victory at the general election.

In the most open Labour attack yet on Mr Brown's premiership, Mr Purnell wrote: ''I now believe that your continued leadership makes a Conservative victory more, not less, likely. That would be disastrous for our country...

''We need to show that we are prepared to fight to be a credible Government and have the courage to offer an alternative future.

''I am therefore calling on you to stand aside to give our Party a fighting chance of winning. As such, I am resigning from Government.''

The Conservatives have demanded an immediate general election, calling on the Prime Minister to go to Buckingham Palace today to ask for a dissolution of Parliament.

David Cameron said the Government was ''falling apart in front of our eyes''.

In a statement last night , Downing Street said Mr Brown was ''disappointed'' by Mr Purnell's decision but was giving his ''undivided attention'' to the big challenges facing the country.

''How we guide the economy through the downturn and strengthen it for the future; how we push ahead with reform of, and investment in, our public services; and how we renew trust in our democracy and Parliament.''

Number 10 confirmed that the Prime Minister would be ''restructuring the Government'' over the coming days, fuelling expectations that a make-or-break reshuffle of the Cabinet will begin today.