Instead, Walpole made himself extremely useful to George II, who soon became convinced of his competence and retained him in his post. The thawing of relations was helped by the friendship between Newcastle and George's daughter Amelia, leading many to speculate, without substantive evidence, that they were having an affair. By November 1727, Walpole and Newcastle's positions were both safe once more, boosted by an election victory that saw them gain 430 seats to the opposition's 128 in the House of Commons.