Now we've got  Dickens out the way, this election blog is closing down with a celebration of the Conservative victory in Torridge and West Devon, but tinged with disappointment at the Conservative failure to gain power nationally and locally, dismay at the results for Devon County Council.

Firstly joy.

Geoffrey Cox was elected today at 5.30am. The count had gone into overtime because of the number of postal ballots. It was a nervous wait, as the tallies taken of ballot boxes throughout the night pointed to a close result. As it happened, the differential in postal ballots probably increased the Conservative majority. Lower turnouts in towns also helped. 

Geoffrey was kept waiting whilst the process of checking and verification was completed.  We are satisfied that locally the election was conducted in as fair and efficient a manner as possible, given the challenges election staff faced from postal voting and rolling registration, which both gave cause for concern on a wider scale. But that is the government's fault, not the local Council's.

When the moment arrived and the declaration was finally made there were tears of joy. It was a great feeling to have campaigned so hard, for so long and to finally have a result. This was a team effort and everyone who contributed, from putting up a poster, delivering a leaflet, stuffing an envelope, to those who contributed financially to the campaign deserves to share in the victory. Thanks and appreciation are due.

David Walter, the Liberal Democrat said later in a news interview that the Lib Dem vote did not turn out. He asserted that Lib Dem supporters had somehow been complacent. This does not square with what happened at the County Council elections which we shall deal with below. At the end of the day, the Conservatives fought the best campaign, and had the best candidate. Victory was both earned and deserved, not conjured or gained by default. The voters did come out, but not to vote for the Liberal Democrat, at least in this election.

Then sorrow.

It was perhaps too much to expect the Conservatives to seize power and uproot the massive Labour majority. This goes back to 1997, when the Labour victory left the Conservatives with a mountain to climb. We are now closer to the summit, but not there yet.

There is still hope. Labour's majority is much smaller, the discontent within its ranks less easily contained and the agenda will probably focus more and more on the size and cost of the state under Gordon Brown.

If the Lib Dems are going to occupy an independent position they must reconsider their juvenile animosity and antipathy towards the Conservatives. It is foolish and immature to constantly berate the Tories to the exclusion of Labour. For all the talk from the BBC about the Lib Dems being a genuine third force in politics they remain a long way from being a part of government. The Lib Dem approach to politics reflects this all to often.

Over the next four or so years the power will ebb away from Tony Blair - perhaps more quickly than he would like or calculate. Taxes will rise, public services will stagnate further and we shall still struggle to assert and define our position in the world. The liberal orthodoxies of political correctness will continue to fragment society. Rural areas like Torridge and West Devon will not fair well under Labour. It will take all the energy that Geoffrey Cox can muster to defend local services.

There is hope, however. Many seats that were once Conservative and fell to Labour in 1997 are now much more marginal. When the Conservatives come to drawing up their next list of target seats they wish to take from Labour to form a Government, they will find a target rich environment.  It is up to the party over the next four years to project unity, purpose and where necessary discipline to earn government. For all the Lib Dem talk, it is the Tories who are the real contenders for Government.

More sorrow.

Devon County Council is once again in Liberal Democrat hands. Congratulations to James McInnes for gaining Hatherleigh and Chagford. Christine Marsh held her seat. There was a brace of disappointments and near misses for other Conservative County Council candidates.

So for the next four years the Lib Dems will have a chance to demonstrate that they have matured as a party and can act responsibly in charge of a budget of £600 million, keep taxes low and manage public services like education and social services effectively. They've had other chances and blown them, and we doubt they'll achieve much this time. In four years time, the Conservatives will be poised to take control if they fail.

For all of this the Torridge and West Devon Conservatives leave this election period delighted with the main result and determined to build on the progress made. The Liberal Democrat candidate said his party will be back to challenge the Conseratives. We are not complacent, we will strive to serve the best interests of residents, taxpayers and voters. We're ready to govern.