Local elections 2026: Not a single vote counted in Gosport - nine hours after ballot papers arrived

The sun has risen over Gosport - but not a single borough election vote has yet been counted.

People in towns and cities across the country are waking up to a flurry of election results, with a national trend of Reform UK taking even more seats than first forecast.

But in Gosport, not even one vote for the borough council has been recorded at the time of publication. The reason for this is threefold, and takes a bit of explanation.

Firstly, Gosport has been tallying up county council votes first, before dealing with the borough council elections. Thus far, we have had two county council seats declared - with the Conservatives holding the Lee division and Reform gaining Hardway.

Secondly, the turnout has been far higher this time around, with Lee seeing a turnout of 44.54 per cent for the county council elections. Put simply, more votes means it takes longer to be counted.

Thirdly, The News understands that there are fewer counters at Gosport Leisure Centre, compared to previous years. What’s more, that number has already dwindled as we arrive at the morning, and people are faced with childcare or work commitments.

To compound matters, Gosport Leisure Centre itself is open to the public today, meaning spin classes are underway with thumping dance music - even the media room will soon be sacrified at the altar of pilates.

Leader of Gosport Borough Council, Cllr Peter Chegwyn, has asked the returning officer for an adjournment so people could go home and rest, but this suggestion has been turned down.

We are now waiting to see if Gosport will plough on with results, relocate to town hall or simply adjourn until later in the day.

Thanks to politicians taking a rough tally while votes were being verified, we have a vague idea of what the results will look like.

Reform is expected to take the lion’s share of seats from the election, including most - if not all - of the Lib Dem strongholds. That will oust Cllr Chegwyn’s party from power, while the Conservatives could still cling on to a couple of seats, depending on how the final few votes go.

Cllr Chegwyn said: “It’s obviously going to be a very good night for Reform. They’re certainly going to take seats, possibly off all three parties. The election campaign itself has actually been really unpleasant. People are upset with everyone, no matter which party they represent, and Reform appears to be their answer to that.

“Reform are now claiming that they are the largest political party in Hampshire. I say, best of luck to them.

“Reform are gaining all of our seats, by the looks of things. I’m not sure about the Conservative seats, but there’s a good chance it could be the same outcome. We might hold Brockhurst, if we’re lucky.

“One of our candidates, Cllr Sue Ballard, appears to have lost her seat. She’s very upset, and understandably so.”

Currently, Cllr Paul Carter is the only Reform councillor in Gosport, but once the results are declared, that will inevitably change.

He said: “Speaking to voters, people talked about the cost of living, road repairs and not feeling they’re getting value for money out of the Lib Dems.

“People feel the Criterion Theatre stuff was a waste of money, and the same with the People’s Park - people are seeing it’s not the all singing, all dancing castle the Lib Dems said it was.

“Reform is looking really strong, particularly for Bridgemary. We won the by-election there [in January], Elson is looking good and we could take ward tonight.”

When asked about the prospect of aligning with the Conservatives to take control of Gosport Borough Council, Cllr Carter said: “Nothing at the moment. We’re keeping our cards close to our chest, and we’re the only party fielding 14 candidates.”