Conservatives lose control of South Hams District Council for the first time in its history

South Hams District Council has been led by the Conservatives since it was formed in 1974, but it is now led by the Liberal Democrats. 

As the South Hams District election results come in, the current make up of the council looks like this: 

Liberal Democrats: 19
Conservative:           7
Labour:                      1
Green:                       3
Independant:            1 

Big names who lost their seats included the Deputy Leader of the Council, Cllr Hilary Bastone (Dartmouth and East Dart); Chairman of the Council, Cllr Lance Austen (Ivybridge West); Cllr Richard Foss (Allington and Strete) and Cllr Rosemary Rowe (Dartmouth and East Dart). Leader of the Council, Cllr Judy Pearce, did not stand for re-election. 

Totnes and South Devon MP, Anthony Mangnall, commented on the results, calling them "disappointing". He said: "I've seen how hard the councillors and council candidates have worked for the last few years and I think these results are more of a reflection of the last 18 months of Prime Ministers, rather then the current one. 

"I know all the councillors will continue to work hard for the benefit of the community." 

A spokesperson for South Hams District Council said: "The council welcomes 18 new councillors and 13 returning councillors. A full breakdown of the results can be found on the council’s website, along with results for town and parish council elections in the district.

"The election ran smoothly across South Hams with people voting in polling stations across the district. The turnout across the District was 40.3% of those eligible to cast their vote."

All election results can be found at: www.southhams.gov.uk/full-results