Bad night for the BNP

| Friday, 2 December 2005 Source: Searchlight

The BNP has failed to regain a seat on Thurrock council. Emma Colgate had high hopes of winning a by-election on 1 December in Grays Riverside, where Nicholas Geri was a BNP councillor between September 2003 and June 2004.

This was probably the last chance before the May 2006 local elections for the BNP to reverse its 14-month losing streak and the party mobilised activists from the whole of the southeast of England. A victory would have strengthened the BNP as it went into the May 2006 campaign.

Labour retained the seat with 42%. Colgate was beaten into third place with 25%, a slightly lower percentage than Geri obtained when he lost the seat in June 2004.

Newly elected Councillor Cook extended her warmest thanks to the Searchlight and Together groups volunteers from Essex and London who played a significant role in beating the BNP.

In the other Thurrock by-election, in The Homesteads, on the same day, John Cotter came bottom with less than 10%. Labour took the seat from the Conservatives.

The BNP had high hopes for Gateshead, especially after its very poor result in Sunderland on 24 November, but failed to make any impact. Keith McFarlane came third with a mere 96 votes – 7.8%. The Northeast region of the BNP put much more effort into that ward than into Sunderland and had hoped to win or at least come a close second.

Results

Grays Riverside ward, Thurrock council 1 December 2005

The Homesteads ward, Thurrock council 1 December 2005

Felling ward, Gateshead Metropolitan Borough Council 1 December 2005