AROUND one in three people in Thurrrock bothered to vote on Thursday.

Unusually, returning officer Angie Ridgwell declared the turnouts in wards before the results, and before counts in some wards had actually started.

The first figures released were for South Chafford where just 998 people out of 4,641 voted, a turn-out of just 22 per cent.

In contrast, in Orsett there was a turn-out of 40%, with 1,856 out of a possible 4,640 casting their votes.

Other figures:

Chafford and North Stifford: 1,647 - 31%; Belhus: 1,842 - 29%; Aveley and Uplands: 1,886 - 29%; Grays Riverside: 1,725 - 24%; Grays Thurrock: 2,144 - 34%; West Thurrock: - 1,643 - 26%; Little Thurrock Blackshots: 1,570 - 35%; Tilbury St Chads: 1,118 - 28%; Tilbury Riverside: 1,331 - 31%; East Tilbury: 1,431 - 31%; Chadwell St Mary: 2,206 - 31%.