The Prime Minister has to be a Member of Parliament in order to serve his role. Tony Blair faced little challenge by either party to his seat, and was returned to Parliament - and potentially to a second term as Prime Minister, by a 17,713 vote majority.
Similarly, Charles Kennedy's future as Liberal Democrat leader remains fairly certain; he handily won in his constituency. His party's strong showing is a sure sign that his days as leader look secure for some time to come.
However, whilst Conservative leader William Hague won his seat with a clear majority, his future as leader is over. The Conservatives repeated their disastrous performance in the 1992 General Election, and this prompted Mr. Hague to announce his resignation as leader on June 8th, 2001. A bitter leadership contest between certain pro-European and anti-European members of the Conservative party is now expected, with popular member Ken Clarke and "compassionate conservative" Michael Portillo early front-runners.
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