IT DID not take long for The Correspondent to find out what lay in store.
“From what I’m seeing, Labour’s getting battered,” said one senior source.
Tameside Council’s election results were clearly big as Sky News and the BBC set up camp at one end of Dukinfield Town Hall’s main room.
As it turned out, seeing 47 years of Labour control evaporate, with literally hundreds of years of experience losing, their decision was justified.
Dukinfield must also get used to a new feeling, not having John Taylor as a Councillor, which he had been since 1984.
In Droylsden West, Ann Holland came fourth after serving her community since 1989, while former leader Brenda Warrington was unceremoniously ditched by just over 1,000 votes as Denton west, like every ward other than St Peter’s, went to Reform UK.
Seeing her traipse out of the room long before the result was declared gave a hint of what was coming.
There were still gasps at some results. Tafheen Sharif lost Mossley tom Reform’s Gary Roylance by just 74 votes and seeing Conservative Liam Billington come second to Reform’ Jenny Ardron-Adams by 122 in Stalybridge South was a real shock.
However, we did not get to learn what the winner thought as she was conspicuous by her absence. Instead, a teary-eyed now former councillor took to the stage.
Reform UK winning 18 of the 19 wards in Tameside came as a surprise to even the most ardent Labour follower, even though they expected to lose several.
Perhaps predictably, a large P45 form was produced next to a picture of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starer. Although if reports are to be believed, that image mays- soon feature someone a lot more local.
And the saying ‘wiping smiles from faces’ would not necessarily be applicable – there were few smiles to start with.
“It was probably the worst campaign in terms of hate and people being angry with us that I’d ever had,” said the now former Councillor Taylor, who lost to Reform Uk’s James Rhodes by 621 votes.
“I’ve been working in the Labour Party for over 50 years on elections and it was the worst one in terms of the way people saw us. They were very angry with us.
“It was the conversations on the doors and to be told to head off and, ‘You’re a waste of time. You’re ruining the country.’
“It was the bad language on the door and the anger. We had incidents where one of our campaigners had a car driven at him. On the other side, I met some very, very nice people who shook my hand and said, ‘I’m sorry John, it’s not you but I can’t vote Labour this time.”
He can also see where the ‘protest vote’ came from, adding: “It’s a national thing. They’re being fed these stories on a daily basis about Labour and about what Reform can do.
“It’s relentless every single day. So I understand.
“I understand there’s been a massive protest. But what I really understand is that people in my ward and other wards have made a decision. And it’s their decision.
“And if you’re a democrat, you have to accept it. I’ve won lots of elections and I’ve lost one. But I’m not going away.
“I’m going to stay and fight for what I believe in. I’m a socialist. I’m a member of a socialist party. “
As The Correspondent and many other people, left Dukinfield town Hall at about 4.30am, dawn was just beginning to break over Tameside.
A new dawn that saw Tameside Council under no overall control and John Taylor not sitting on it.
But do not think he will vanish as he added: “I already volunteer at a homeless centre, and I’ve worked there for years. I warned them that what could happen, and I said if it did, I’ll increase my hours.
“So I’ll be increasing my hours and I’ll still be doing work with the environment. I’ll still be out litter picking. I’ll still be doing what I do for the environment. I ain’t going away.”