'The people's army is on the march' declares Walsall's first Reform councillor after 55-vote victory
The newly elected Reform UK councillor for Pelsall has pledged to be a 'pain in the backside' to the council establishment - and warned his rivals that 'the people's army is on the march'.
Councillor Graham Eardley, who defeated Conservative Lee Chapman by 55 votes in the Pelsall by-election, said the result showed there was no such thing as a safe seat in the borough.
Get the latest headlines delivered straight to your inbox with the Express & Star’s free newsletter
"Pelsall was the third safest Tory seat in the borough of Walsall, if we can win there we can win anywhere," he said.
"The Tories threw the kitchen sink at us, they had Robert Jenrick down, but they still couldn't beat us.
"The people's army is on the march."
The by-election was held following the resignation of Councillor Garry Perry, who had quit as council leader in May, claiming he had been subjected to a 'sustained campaign of political attrition' and 'undermining'.
It will be something of a comeback for Councillor Eardley, who began as a Conservative councillor in the 1990s, and later defected to the UK Independence Party.
He said he had experienced a 'whirlwind' since his election on Thursday night, and had been invited to a reception at the House of Commons on Tuesday next week.
"I've been getting stopped non-stop in the street," he said. "Hopefully it will calm down a bit next week, and I can get down to representing Pelsall."
He said his most immediate concerns will be heavy vehicles using the village as a 'rat-run', campaigning against a lithium recycling plant on the boundary with Cannock Chase, and the eyesore Bush pub.
"I'm realistic, I'm one councillor on my own, there are 60 councillors in Walsall borough, and the Tories hate my guts," he said.
"I'm not going to get any motions passed, because if I put anything forward, the first thing they will ask is 'anyone to second that?'
"What I can do is ask a lot of questions, and be a pain in the backside."
Mr Chapman, who polled 1,176 votes, compared to Councillor Eardley's 1,231, thanked the people who voted for him, and said he would continue to serve Pelsall in whatever capacity he could.
"It was a very close race, but Reform edged it," he said.
"The national picture has clearly played a big part in this by-election, and it shows how strongly those feelings can carry into local contests.
"That said, I want to say a huge thank you to everyone who came out to vote, supported me, and stood by our campaign.
"We ran a strong, positive campaign built on service, community, and putting Pelsall first. I'm proud of the effort, energy and teamwork that went into every part of it. This by-election may be over, but my commitment to our community doesn't stop here."
Third place went to Joe Belcher of the Green Party, on 127 votes, followed by Labour's Hannah Jones on 127, and Liberal Democrat Dan Barker on 72.
