Reform UK candidate Christopher Thornhill wins March South and Rural seat by just three votes

An extremely close result at this year’s county council elections saw Reform emerge victorious in a ward by just three votes.

You could feel the tension in the air as the Conservative Party lost its seat for March South and Rural today.

Reform’s Christopher Thornhill took the position with 1,056 votes, with Gary Christy receiving 1,053.

John Gowing was the previous councillor for the area, but after eight years he decided not to stand again.

Mr Thornhill was not in Wisbech’s Hudson Leisure Centre Hall when his victory was announced. However, Andy Osborn, who has just won the seat for Roman Bank and Peckover, gave a speech on his behalf.

“I am very pleased with the result,” he said.

“Even though it was a narrow majority, I am going to enjoy working with him in the future.

“We’ve had the public saying that we need Reform, but whether that is just good lip service, I’m not sure.

“At the end of the day, it’s the ballot box that tells us what they really want.

“I’d rather see a true reflection.”

Other nominees were:

• Peter Bimson (Labour) - 268 votes

• Andrew Crawford (Green Party) - 154 votes

• Christopher Ross (Liberal Democrats) - 247 votes

The turnout for the ward was 28.38%.

Results are still coming for the district’s other areas - you can click here to stay updated.