Crossword Genius

Abhorrent circle in Liberal party capturing last of seats (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

loathsome

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'abhorrent' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'circle in liberal party capturing last of seats' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'circle' could be 'o' (O is a circle) and 'o' is located in the answer.
'liberal' could be 'l' (abbreviation) and 'l' is present in the answer.
'last' could be 't' (I've seen this in other clues) and 't' is present in the answer.
'of' could be 'o' and 'o' is found in the answer.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for loathsome that I've seen before include "Repulsive" , "15 [ABHORRENT]" , "Hateful" , "gross" , "Disgusting, nauseating" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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