All the latest news from the Bradford and Keighley election counts (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

All the latest news from the Bradford and Keighley election counts

5:30am Friday 4th May 2012 in News

5.30am: Labour Council leader Ian Greenwood has lost his seat to Respect's Alyas Karmani. Just 17 votes divided the candidates and stood in the way of Labour winning overall control of the Council.

5.10am: The future of Bradford Council is hanging on just a handful of votes as the Little Horton votes go to a fourth recount. It came down to the wire as Respect took the Bradford Moor seat - and now the Little Horton battle between Ian Greenwood and Alyas Karmani could be decided by as little as 18 votes.

4.50am: Labour councillor Andrew Thornton holds on to the Royds seat - so if Labour can hold off Respect and secure just one of the final two seats, they will take the overall majority and become the first party to gain full control of the council for the first time in 12 years.

4.40am: Labour need to take two of the three seats left to declare if they are to gain overall control of the Council. Bradford Moor, Royds and Little Horton wards are still to declare. It is looking like a close call between Council leader Ian Greenwood and Respect Candidate Alyas Karmani for the Little Horton seat, which has gone to a recount.

4.10am: With seven results still to come in, Labour have won nine seats and Conservatives have seven seats each, Liberal Democrats have two, Greens one and one independent. Respect have won three seats. Labour need to win four of the remaining seats to take full control of the Council.

3.40am: Baildon - Conservative gain; Bingley - Conservative hold; Bingley Rural - Conservative hold; City - Respect gain; Craven - independent gain; Keighley West - Labour gain; Shipley - Green hold; Thornton and Allerton - Conservative hold; Tong - Labour hold; Wharfedale - Conservative hold; Wibsey - Labour hold; Windhill and Wrose - Labour hold; Worth Valley - Conservative hold

3.25am: Respect take first seat on Bradford Council to mighty cheer. Ruqayyah Collector beats Labour's Sajawal Hussain by 700 votes. Respect polled more than 2,500.

3.10am: First 11 results are in. Labour take four seats, Conservatives five, Greens one and one independent.

2.30am: Labour gains are expected in Keighley East and Keighley West.

Former Tory Councillor, Adrian Naylor, who was deselected by the Conservatives and stood as an Independent, is believed to have retained his seat in Craven, polling about 40 per cent of the votes.

The first result to be announced was Wharfedale, where Conservative candidate Dale Smith – set to become Bradford’s next Lord Mayor – held his seat. He polled 2,252 votes, with Labour’s Dave Allen his closest rival with 694.

Coun Smith said: “I am delighted. I had not assumed I would win as there is always a tension in local elections.” He said voters in Wharfedale were “anxious” about protecting the green belt from development, adding: “We recognise the need for affordable housing but we are concerned about the connectivity with places where there are jobs in Leeds and Bradford.”

Green party leader, Councillor Martin Love, also held Shipley, polling about half the votes in the ward. He said: “It will have been our best result ever. I am very pleased to be back in for another four years and would like to thank the people of Shipley for putting their trust in me.”

2.19am: Conservative councillor Dale smith is re-elected in Wharfedale with 2,252 votes - a majority of 1,558.

2.17am: Counting has started. And we are hearing 1,800 postal voted have just been "found" which might alter parties' predictions.

1.47am: Labour confident of winning Windhill and Wrose. First results expected in about 15 minutes. Stay tuned...

1.38am: It is neck and neck in Little Horton between Council leader, Labour’s Ian Greenwood and Respect candidate Alyas Karmani, and heading for a recount.

Labour MP Gerry Sutcliffe, who represents Bradford South, told the Telegraph & Argus that indications suggest the key result is 150 either way.

Mr Karmani added that it was “neck and neck” and that Respect would be “delighted” if they were to fell the leader of the Council.

Mr Sutcliffe added that Respect had taken two seats off Labour – City and Manningham, one from the Conservatives in Heaton and one from the Lib Dems in Bradford Moor.

He said that Labour was expecting to win two seats from the Conservatives - Clayton and Fairweather Green, and Keighley East. The party was also performing well in Queensbury and Worth Valley, which are currently held by the Tories, and Craven, which is independent.

Counting appears set to begin shortly as the verification process ends.

1.30am: First results from Keighley Leisure Centre are set to be declared soon. Former senior Conservative Councillor Adrian Naylor, now standing for The Independents, seems to be storming it in Craven, Tories appear to be holding Bingley and Bingley Rural. Labour set to make gains in Keighley East and Keighley West.

1.10am: Latest from Keighley: Our reporter Marc Meneaud is hearing rumours that Craven's independent councillor Adrian Naylor is looking like he's polled 40 per cent, but nothing official.

12.35am: Liberal Democrat MP for Bradford East David Ward is at Richard Dunn. Verification is continuing.

Council leader Ian Greenwood is not talking to the T&A yet. Sombre faces in Labour camp.

11.45pm: It's getting busy at the Richard Dunn count. Labour supporters are out in force with Council leader Ian Greenwood here along with executive members Councillor David Green and Councillor Andrew Thornton. Bradford South MP Gerry Sutcliffe is also here.

11.40pm: Labour Ward councillor Susan Hinchcliffe just turned up at Keighley. Here to back Alex Ross shaw for Labour in Windhill and Wrose

11.33pm:Results of the Bradford Council election are expected to be declared between 3am and 4am.

10.57pm: Current Bingley Rural Tory Councillor, Baroness Margaret Eaton, said this election will be "hard to predict", as will the mayoral referendum.

Keighley and Ilkley MP, Kris Hopkins, is in the hall and chatting with Conservative party members.

10.48PM: Ballot boxes are starting to arrive for the Bradford Council elections at Keighley Leisure Centre.

Former Conservative leader Anne Hawkesworth is in bullish mood. She is up against Ann Cryer, Keighley's former Labour MP for the Ilkley seat.

Lib Dem John Watmough has arrived. The former Windhill and Wrose councillor is hoping to win back the seat he lost to Labour's Susan Hinchcliffe in 2010.

10.40PM: Our reporter at the Keighley count has been told by a a Council official that reporters and press photographers are not being allowed on the floor while count is going on.

10.20PM: Ballot boxes have started arriving at Richard Dunn and votes are now being verified. Due to the high level of media interest in the Bradford results, media are not being allowed access to the count hall floor at Richard Dunn, just the balcony overlooking it.

10.00PM: The polls have now closed in the Bradford Council elections and mayoral referendum.

Tens of thousands of ballots cast earlier today will shortly start arriving at the two count venues Richard Dunn Sports Centre in Odsal and The Leisure Centre in Keighley.

A total of 30 seats on the Council will be determined along with whether Bradford will have an elected mayor.

Telegraph and Argus reporters Jo Winrow and Marc Meneaud will be at the counts.

The verification process starts first, where the number of ballot papers in a ballot box are first checked. Once this has been completed the counting will begin.

The local election ballot papers will be counted at the two venues and the mayoral referendum ballot papers will all be counted at Odsal.