IT may have gone to the toss of a coin at the last election, but it was clear before counting was over last Thursday night (25th July) that Graham Pritchard (pictured) had taken the recently vacated seat in the Drybridge Ward of Monmouth Town Council for the Tories.

All three candidates turned out for the count at Rockfield Community Centre, with Williamson, Were and Pritchard watching the ballot papers being sifted into three piles.

Before long it was evident that the votes for Green Party candidate Chris Were were not stacking up against the others and it became a two horse race, with Mark Williamson of the Monmouth Party congratulating his Tory opponent before the ballot papers had been finally tallied.

Deputy returning officer John Pearson formally announced that there had been 260 ballot papers in total, 123 of them postal votes, giving a 12.8 per cent turnout, somewhat lower than expected.

With only one spoilt ballot paper, the figures were: Christopher Were 32 votes; Mark Williamson 89 votes and Graham Pritchard 138 votes.

Speaking to the Beacon immediately after the announcement, winning candidate Graham Pritchard said: "I am delighted for the people who live in the Drybridge Ward, as I live in the Drybridge Ward and wish to represent the people of the Drybridge Ward, and I shall do that to the best of my ability."

He will now join the other ward councillors Terry Christopher and Stephen Davis at the next town council meeting.