Reform UK, the party led by Nigel Farage, stormed to a landslide victory in the Durham County Council elections, held last Thursday.
In the Shildon and Dene Valley Division, Kate Rowland, James Stephenson and Michael Ramage claimed the three seats available at County Hall, all for Reform UK.
Overall, in what was seen by many as a shock result, the party swept the boards, taking 65 of the available 98 seats at the newly restructured County Hall while the traditional establishment parties were almost completely wiped out.
Labour returned just four councillors, down from 53 at the previous election in 2021 and down from 94 councillors in the 126-seat council just twelve years ago.
The Conservative Pary held on to just one seat, having won 24 seats four years ago.
The Liberal Democracts, meanwhile, went from 17 seats to 14, while the Green Party gained one to double their representation to two seats.
The remaining twelve seats were won by independents who secured a combined total of 31 seats in 2021 in a chamber that was controlled by a coalition of all parties to shut out Labour.
This time there will be no need for coalitions with Reform taking over two thirds of all seats.
In Shildon, its long-standing Labour councillors each received less than half the number of Reform UK votes in an historic election, not only in the county but in Shildon and Dene Valley.
Speaking to the Crier in the immediate aftermath of the result, newly elected Cllr Kate Rowland said: “We have had fantastic support from the people of Shildon, Eldon and across the division.
“We have also had a fantastic response from local businesses and we are looking forward to serving our constituents.”
Commenting on why he felt Reform UK performed so well at the elections, newly elected Cllr James Stephenson said: “People are getting sick of the two party system. That has come to an end today right across the country.
“There hasn’t been much change in Shildon for a very long time and we’re here to try our best to enforce that change, both here and across the county.”
Responding to whether they felt voters had exercised their choice on the basis of national messaging, Cllr Rowland said: “Obviously the national mesage has made a big difference but locally, we have been out and about, we’ve spoken to a lot of people about the issues that affect them too.
“We will be looking at how the county council budget is spent, we’ll be tackling anti-social behaviour and the poor condition of housing.”
Cllr Stephenson added: “There are also lots of national issues that affect us locally, such as potholes.
“Derelict housing is a major issue and we will also be looking to see even distribution of investment. For example, a lot of money has been spent on the bus station in Bishop Auckland, but nothing here in Shildon.
“We want to help see Shildon, Eldon, Coundon and Leeholme and everywhere else become nicer places to live.”
Shildon & District's local community newspaper.
