Wrexham Votes 2012 – LIVE UPDATES

Welcome to our live update page from today’s local elections! Throughout the day we will be posting updates of what we observe, have been told or tipped off about. Plus we will give you further information putting it all into context.

We will be out and about around Wrexham today, and giving live coverage from the count tonight!

LIVE UPDATES:

02:01 Its 2am, we are slightly hyper due to the sugar intake but it was needed since we started doing this at 08:45 this morning! As the below picture shows, the hall is being tidied up with empty ballot boxes being put away and tables being taken down. We here at Wrexham.com would like to say thanks to Wrexham Council for their hospitality here in the media room and Glyndwr for the wifi connection which made this possible! Hopefully this coverage was another first for the town with live updates, pictures, stats and even some HD video thrown in. Oh, and a picture of a Duck going to vote.

Goodnight all, and thanks for reading!
Cheers,
Liam, Mike and Rob.

ps. Join our forums to let us and other wrexhamites know what you think!

01:52 Heading towards 2am here and this is the view around the hall now in another panorama ! To view a massive version click here !

1:47 Whilst Labour are keeping quiet on their plans, several sources we have spoken to have said they believe Labour are planning to go into a coalition with one of the independent factions although there is nothing official. We will keep you updated whenever there is any news on that, most likely within the next week.

01:46We have spoken to Labour leader for Wrexham Neil Rogers who said that at present no discussions have taken place on how the council will shape up. He said: “It’s early days yet but we have had 11 net gains so far although lost one too but it’s a tremendous result. We will meet tomorrow morning to discuss our plans.”

01:42 We are going to compare that to the current situation – as of 10pm tonight! By our maths:
Labour +10
Conservatives +-0
Lib Dems -7
Plaid Cymru -2
Independents -1 (however there are a few groups so hard to be precise!)

So Lib Dems down quite abit , with the big shock that Council Leader Ron Davies lost his seat in Little Acton. Plaid Cymru only have one seat remaining despite a fair effort from their candidates. Labour have made sweeping gains increasing their number from 13 to 23!

01:40 So here is the final standings for the 2012 Wrexham Council Elections! More stats in a tick…

Labour – 23
Conservatives – 5
Lib Dems – 4
Plaid Cymru – 1
Independents 19

01:36 We are totting tallies, counting on fingers , murmuring numbers and adding stuff up … our stats will be up shortly!

01:33 A view of the count hall as thankyous are said , and applause rings out after a very speedy and efficient election and count process.

01:31 Holt – the final seat being announced – Morris CON HOLDS but sees his vote down from 737 to 510! Thats a wrap in terms of results… but we will tot up some stats now and pop up some comments from around here!

01:30 we think there is just one left!

01:29 Coedpoeth – two seats here remember – LAB GAIN & LAB HOLD. Whitby BNP got 110 votes, he got 264 votes last time so took a hit.

01:28 Acton – LAB HOLD with over 400 votes.

01:27 Just had a tweet in from @GarethJAnderson telling us “If the person is the chairman of the council/first citizen they are the Mayor, no matter their gender. A male Mayor’s consort is the Mayoress. They have no formal role in the council.” further to our tweets about Gwynneth Roberts.

01:26 Smithfield – Gregory wins upping his majority by a little – IND HOLD.

01:25 Ponciau now another two seater up for grabs – Pemberton & Hughes win so a IND HOLD & LAB GAIN. Interesting there as Aled Roberts and Paul Pemberton were winners by miles last time round. Roberts was not standing this time as hes now an AM – he was a Lib Dem though, so Labour gain from Lib Dems there.

01:22 Cefn – 788 votes and 702 means Taylor & Wright are elected to the dual seater , different candidates but IND & LAB HOLD. 51.1% turnout.

01:20 Grosvenor ward – Gwynneth Roberts up now, who is likely to be the next Mayoress if she is elected – which she ISNT ! LAB GAIN. Only a 24% turnout.

01:18 Cartrefle up now – Ronnie Prince HOLDs.

01:17 Another batch of results due… Erddig – strongly contested this time all after Bob Duttons seat. Bob Dutton HOLDs his seat.

01:15 A quick view of the hall as it stands, compared to earlier its got very quiet out there but still a fair number to come!

00:12 41.3% was the turnout in Little Acton for any stattos out there!

01:10 Borras Park now , Jim Kelly HOLD for Lib Dem.

01:09 Brymbo now in – Paul Rodgers last time won by 60 votes, and he holds his seat with an increased majority! We believe he works in Tesco , so you could say with those votes, every little helps!

01:07 LAB GAIN Gresford East & West by just THREE votes.

01:07 A Labour candidate got so excited he fell up the stairs!

01:06 Boland 702 & Taylor 825 votes LAB GAIN over IND x2 in Llay.

01:05 More from Ron Davies now – who sounds more annoyed at the ‘good people voted out tonight who have worked hard on this council’ than his own seat loss. He said “National politics has come into play, but I didnt think it would have to that extent”. He went on “I am very disappointed in myself but also for the youngsters who have been cast aside”.

01:01 Ron Davies, the leader of the council who was booted out tonight by a narrow 9 votes, is giving interviews. We will bring his words to you now… he says “maybe my time was up”

01:00 A server crash due to large amounts of traffic, but we are back up to sugar fuelled speed here!

00:57 Gwesyllt North is a LAB HOLD. Williams with 430 over Plaid who had 164.

00.58 Gwersyllt East and South is a Labour hold for both seats. David Griffiths and Bernie McCann.

00:56 Whitegate – Labour gain Brian Cameron gets 322 votes over Plaid’s Marc Jones with 265.

00:55 Queensway – LABOUR GAIN over Plaid. Colin Powell wins with 198 votes only 2 more than Carrie Harper of Plaid.

00:48 Wynnstay ward – which was Labour with 365 votes, Malcom King he retains with 337 votes. LAB HOLD

00:47 Ceirog Valley now instead! Barbara Roberts retains her seat – INDEPENDENT HOLD.

00:46 Gresford East and West now, is …and incomplete declaration!

00:45 Due to volume of traffic our site is going quite slow – bear with us!

00:44 Hermitage ward now – Graham Rodgers is elected, beating George James so LAB GAIN from Independent.

00:40 Alun Jenkins holds Offa for Lib Dems with 297 votes.

00:38 Joan Lowe wins in Penycae & Ruabon South Independent HOLD

00:35 Garden Village – Andy Williams LAB landslide 643 votes , Lib Dem had 550 votes down to 121!

00:34 Marford & Hoseley – Clarke 114 , Edwards Jones 233 , 466 for Edwards. Welsh Lib Dem increase majority.

00:31 Bit of a breather there, after that shock of a result. Currently Wrexham.com is serving 70+ pages a minute with 90% of the traffic hitting this page – thanks everyone and glad we can provide this service :) We havent hit the Red Bull yet, coke and skittle powered so far!

00:25 We have confirmation now of the Ron Davies – leader of the council, or was, has gone! Little Acton results are in – hes lost by nine votes! William Baldwin won.

00:24 Ruabon – Lab HOLD Dana Louise Davies 397 votes

00:23 Minera , Kelly retains his seat.

00:19 Rossett , CON RETAIN , Baldwin.

00:17 We had someone give us a ring live here at the count pointing out we hadnt mentioned the seats which were not contested and therefore already ‘won’ – Johnstown, Llangollen Rural and Esclusham which are all IND RETAINS. Plus zero percent turnout we would imagine !

00:16 Could be big news brewing here, with Council Leader Ron Davies looking a little stony faced, or is it a poker face?

00:14 To make that panorama image go massive click here – but make sure you hit the back button to get back to our live blog!

00:13 Bronnington , which was a strong Conservative seat, is HELD 587 votes down from 730 though.

00:12 Hopefully this works – a detailed panorama shot of the count at work, can you spot anyone?!

00:10 Gwersyllt West , which was Arfon Jones with 412 votes for Plaid – who increases to 515! Plaid HOLD.

00:07 Overton , Kenyon (CON) had this one with 731 votes last time round, now has 498 votes but retains the seat – CON HOLD.

00:06 Another batch coming in …. Chirk North now – Ian Roberts retains his seat Independent Hold.

00:01 Past midnight here now, although we are all fresh as daisies – as Mike trips over a laptop cable and Liam jumps six feet in the air scared! Sugar overload? Perhaps!

00:00 Chirk South , Terry Evans wins IND retained seat with 466 votes.

23:58 Pant – Owens wins, IND retained with 346 votes. 40.5% turnout.

23:56 Penycae – Caldecotte loses his seat, Independent John Phillips wins with 277. IND GAIN.

23:55 Brynyffynnon – 387 votes takes Phil Wynn over the line retaining his seat, although as Independent not Lib Dem as he stood last time. Harvey Welsh Lab got 293 votes.

23:52 Quick run down – Lab 4 , Lib Dem 1, Independent 2. Overall Lab +2 by our maths!

23:50 As you probably have guessed they are doing them in batches as they complete counts, so when one starts expect 2-3 results to come in quick succession. We have a decent system setup with the three of us here, and very confident we are ahead of anyone else with the results. We are trying to help by feeding some of the press from our coke & skittle supply!

23:45 Rhosnesni now declared, previously held by Lib Dem… Ann Evans LAB GAIN with 295 votes , very tight as nearest had 268. 32.2% turnout.

23:43 Marchwiel – Independent HOLD , Pritchard wins with 488 nearest candidate against him got 125. 32.2% turnout.

23:42 Stansty now… Labour landslide 893 votes for Bithell , Lib Dems only got 39 votes! 53.9% turnout.

23:40 Maesydre actually! O’Toole wins Lib Dem HOLD with 242 votes.

23:38 Penycae next to the stage, currently held by Labour – Mr Caldecotte who won by a margin of just 23 votes last time round…lets see what happens this time!

23:35 Some turnouts here, its not great reading is it? Plas Madoc 19.8% turnout. Gwenfro 28.4% and 26.9% in New Broughton.

23:32 Here is a quick video of the first return of the evening – you get the full multimedia experience with us here at Wrexham.com ;)

23:30 Plas Madoc now, welsh labour HOLD. Paul Blackwell wins with 171 votes.

23:30 Mini batching coming in – Gwenfro now! Neil Rodgers , Labour retain with 348 votes.

23:28 New Broughton results in ! Terrance Edwards wins , Independent retain the seat. 26.9 Turnout.

23:22 Another quick bit of info – the current setup of the council – 52 members who form a coalition council. The current leader is Cllr Ron Davies whos a Lib Dem and David Bithell is his deputy (Independent). 8 other Councillors make up the ‘executive board’ , Arfon Jones (Plaid Cymru) Joan Lowe (Independent) Alun Jenkins (Lib Dem) Neil Rodgers and Mike Williams (both Labour) Rodney Skelland (Conservative) Mark Pritchard (Independent) and Bob Dutton (Independent).

Its worth noting there are no ward changes since the last election in 2008.

23:19 Picture of that first declaration below – and there was a lowly 27% turnout.

23:14 LABOUR GAIN Bryn Cefn. Barbara Roxburgh with 271 votes the winner. Liam Hincks of the Conservatives gets 85 and Simon Mayers of Lib Dems gets 70.

23:11 Just been told…first declaration ‘very soon’!

23:10 Candidates are herded into areas in the middle and around the sides of the sports hall , either nattering away to each others or sternly staring at the count taking place! Can you spot anyone in here?

23:05 One bit of news that we had to keep quiet until the polls closed was that Independent Councillor for Smithfield, Keith Gregory has accused rival Labour councillor Malcolm King who is standing in Wynnstay of harassing him yesterday evening. Cllr Gregory said that he has made a complaint to North Wales Police.

In a seperate incident there were claims that a couple of Plaid Cymru placards was burnt in Caia Park over night. We did go to investigate but couldn’t find any evidence.

23:00 Before our next update which is a tad more serious in nature, this is one of the three strong Wrexham.com team hard at work! Plus lots of sustainance to keep us going to the expected 3am end!

22:54 Its just been announced that all the boxes are in so its ‘game on’ in terms of the count!

22:43 We promised a stat attack so here is some for you plus abit of history! 52 Councillors will be elected to 47 Wards. We calculated the total wage for this to be around £850,000 a year! A run down of numbers standing:

Labour 43
Independent 31
Conservative 18
Plaid Cymru 13
Liberal Democrats 22
BNP 1
UKIP 1
Other 3

There were 95 polling stations in and around Wrexham today, with each having a presiding officer and 136 Poll Clerks keeping an eye on things and helping voters. An extra 130 people will be in tonight to count the votes!

The excitement tonight is the use of ‘ballot runners’ , to get the boxes in quickly! We will record some video of these if we can. We are not sure if this is part of the Olympics or not…! ;-)

22:35 Here are some snaps of the count setup… queues out the door, and a view of the area with the declaration stage. There is also a picture of the ballot box being collected at Little Acton!

22:15The first boxes are in as picture below and there are huge queues coming into Glyndwr as candidates and press all rush to the count. They’re probably the biggest queues we’ve seen today in fact!

22:00 BANG! The door has closed on the local election voting window. Hope you got your vote in on time. Mike Corris (@mike_corris) got his vote in just on time after rushing in after the Wrexham match which ended 2-0 to Luton. Shame about the score but all to play for in the second leg.

21:55 We’ve just arrived in the media room at Glyndwr University, internet all set up. Came through Rhosddu, Little Acton, Barkers Lane, St Johns Church, Holt Road and Brynyffynnon. All quiet bar at Little Acton and St Johns where 4 or 5 voters were rushing to get their ballot papers in.

21:40 20 mins until polls close!

21:28 Not alot of people out and about – we are about to do the final round up so will post some pictures here shortly from various polling stations in and around town!

21:03 We are confidently told of the rumour that there is a 42-45% turnout in Borras Park compared to other murmurings, that would be quite high.

21:00 One Hour To Go! Polls close bang on 10pm, and you need to be in the voting station with your ballot paper to still vote if you run close to the 10pm deadline. No ballots will be given out after 10pm even if you are queuing – not that its likely going by the slowish pace we have seen. Get in touch to let us know if you have not decided to vote, and why! We have three of us doing a round trip of some voting stations before heading down to Glyndwr Sports Hall to attended the count – where we will give you live updates, gossip and stats – plus the odd duck voting pic – throughout the night !

20:43 Gresford and Rossett picking up a little apparently, plus we have just checked the weather radar and due to be a clearish night so a full voting day without any rain as a few predicted. Rumours we are hearing is that turnout is ‘low’.

20:19 Perhaps the best update of the day so far! Fleur Leslie got in touch with us via our twitter account to send this picture of a voter at Maesgwyn Community centre! We are unsure if the Duck was standing, or voting :)

19:49 Little Acton and off Prices Lane all seem busier, with a steady flow of voters. We admit we are now having half an eye on the Luton v Wrexham game now as well – where we are losing 1-0 already! We have our supplies all sorted for the long night ahead, we will be doing another couple of trips around polling stations 8-9pm then as they close, and will be at the count to welcome the sealed boxes to be counted!

18:49 Things are picking up, we have been around the Acton / Borras areas and it seems more are coming out to vote now. There are candidates and teams out now door knocking – and bizzarly in one case leafleting promising ‘to meet you before election day’ – despite it being 6.30pm on the election day! With some places having single figure majorities this type of last minute work can sway things…! Polls close at 10pm sharp remember!

18:16 Just about to head back out and about but checking stats we can see someone is on Wrexham.com right now after searching for “local election 2012 who should i vote for quiz coedpoeth”. We havent done a quiz, but we have Questions & Answers from some candidates that we conducted over here!

Also here is a snap of the tumbleweed rolling past the very quiet polling station opposite Bellevue park earlier today which we forgot to upload!

17:58 We have a few snippets & juicy gossip from today which we will put up when we are live from the count in Glyndwr later on , which will be after 10pm as thats when the polls close. Stay tuned for those later! So far today we have experianced a mixed view from candidates and their teams, with some happy with the turnout (with the talk of cigars and brandy!) however some worried that it could be one of the lowest turnouts Wrexham has seen. Overall we have observed the expected early morning ‘rush’ with it slowing during the day, picking up again at lunchtime but then mid afternoon it was ghost town condition in most polling stations. Candidates now come 6pm are starting to up their game, with an expected ‘rush’ after tea time. Some candidates and their teams are lining up to knock doors and get voters out this evening before the 10pm deadline.

Some questions that have come in are:
Q – When can I vote until?
A – ‘Wrexview’ on our forums has pointed out that the cut off is 10pm and you need to have your ballot paper by then not just being inside/close by.

Q – I dont have a polling card can I still vote?
A – Yes , if you are registered to vote just give your name and address!

Q – Who are the people hanging about outside asking for my voting number?
A – They are ‘counters’ who are usually from parties who use the figures to work out whos voted and whos not, and you dont have to tell them anything if you dont want to.

Any other questions drop us an email ( [email protected]) , tweet (@wrexham)

We think some wards will be very tight – and historically some have been decided on a flip of a coin, one vote or the like – so its worthwhile going to vote!

17:41 We have headed back to Wrexham.com HQ on Yorke St for a quick refresh before heading back out. A quick stat attack and summary of the day so far coming up shortly…

17:25 Down at Barkers Lane now where there are two candidates stood outside talking to voters. It seems one was trying to clarify the rules of candidates at the polling stations and what can and can’t be done. No exact figures given but a ‘steady flow’ of voters we are told.

17:00 Hearing a few loud speakers around town, with people being encouraged to vote. Holt update from @moonshine17 where 190 people have voted so far , and hoping it picks up after teatime !

16:27 We are told Rhosnesni is being very tightly contested. Plus lambs on road out by the Plassey, cute but dangerous!

15:55 Up in Coedpoeth now, where we are told just over 300 people have been in so far and its been pretty steady so far. Another handful have turned up since we came. We must say the Plas Pentwyn building is the nicest polling station yet! Here we are posting this update inside !

15:35 Bellevue very quiet however staff inside told us its about as slow as the general election. Now up to the wards in Gwersyllt which by contrast are getting busy. Ten voters spotted at one, but we think people are starting to vote as they pick children up from school.

15:09 We saw the coaches head off to Luton from Mold road for tonights Wrexham FC game. Popping over the road to Brynyffynnon ward , where again it was quiet. Both candidates have been out and about today. We also saw one party rep helping someone towards the poll station.

14:29 we are speaking to the odd candidate , and one told us he was ‘sat smoking cigars and drinking brandy already’. Another told us that turn out in one ward is certainly higher than expected.

14:11 Borras now where it seems abit busier with a small queue in the carpark !

13:58 Just popped through Queensway and Caia Park, and had a look down Y Wern where we had a report that a candidate placard had been burned. We couldn’t spot anything but we are awaiting further information.

13:22 All quiet in whitegate ward, just off Cefn road. People have ‘bin’ voting!

12:55 Just looking at our live stats there are quite a few people online checking this blog out (hi!!) and one person has reached our site by searching “who do i vote for in 2012 wrexham electian” so I hope Wrexham.com helped out! We are off down to Borras , Whitegate ward then Llay next! Say hello if you spot us – we are the ones wearing the grey Wrexham.com hoodies :)

12.45 In Hightown we’ve heard from someone in their 40s who has never been to vote before and was quite daunted by the prospect. All you have to do to vote is turn up at the polling station and give your name and address (you don’t even need your polling card!). You’ll then be given a ballot paper where you should put a cross in the box next to your candidate of choice. If you have any questions there are plenty of people on hand to help.

12:15 We’ve spoken to a few Wrexhamites dissatisfied with the choice of candidates in their ward already today and a couple have said that they have spoilt their ballot papers as a result. Of course this is a perfectly valid means of protest as all spoilt votes are counted. For those of you interested the Guardian has a few novel suggestions on how to spoil your paper.

11:45 There were 5 people up bright and early voting in Whitegate at 8.30am this morning according to Carol Lloyd (@actiontodate) not bad going at all.

11:15 As pictured below it’s looking a little grey and quiet at Little Acton Community Centre with only one or two voters in and out of the doors. How is it where you are? Send us a tweet to @wrexham or give us a call

10:45 Dave Moss (@redhotchili2009) reports that it’s all quiet on the voting front up in Brynteg. Things usually pick up at around 5pm once everyone has finished work, but we’ll be out speaking to any early voters.

10:10 A bleary eyed reporter checking in for duty this morning. Within the next hour or so we’ll be heading out to polling stations to speak to voters so if you see us in our grey Wrexham.com hoodies don’t forget to come and say hello. Still struggling to decide who to vote for? Check if your candidate responded to our Q&A here.

09:05 We have had two people get in touch mentioning the police have been notified about behaviour in certain wards, we will follow this up right away. Also in Llay voting was slow before 7.15am as You would expect, but @atb88 on twitter said it got busier around half eight.

08:45 We kick off our first update with the polls open since 7am. It’s dry but overcast outside, and looking at our weather radar there is no rain due until 12.30-1.30 . The better the conditions the bigger the turnout usually!