IT is safe to say it has been a disastrous night for the Conservatives.

And nowhere is that more evident than North Herefordshire, where what should have been a safe seat was lost to the Green candidate, Dr Ellie Chowns.

Most recently it was the seat of Tory Sir Bill Wiggin, and both it and its predecessor, the Leominster constituency, had been been Tory for decades.

So what went so very wrong for the Conservatives in North Herefordshire?

As a North Herefordshire voter and resident, I don't think it should come as any surprise that Ellie Chowns has done so well, taking a huge 21,736 votes to Sir Bill's 15,842. 

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Not only is she immediately recognisable from years of involvement in politics, but she was one of the candidates the Greens threw all of their efforts behind.

And her campaign, I believe, has been a masterclass in doing it right. 

For months now, I and other north county locals have been receiving regular communications from the Greens, keeping Ellie's face and work in full public view.

This started well before the election was announced, and continued all the way through to election day itself.

It was only on June 27 that the first (and only) Reform, Lib Dem, and Labour leaflets came through my door and I had nothing from Sir Bill until Tuesday, July 2, when he popped up on my doorbell camera while I was at work.

And it was not just regular leafleting that kept Ellie in the public view, but endorsements from and photo ops with high-profile figures we all recognise, including Grand Designs presenter Kevin McCloud and celebrity chef, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.

It was probably clear to many of us, despite the claims made on the back of the Lib Dem leaflet that "only the Liberal Democrats can beat the Conservatives here [North Herefordshire]", that it was a two-horse race.

And one candidate made themselves so much more visible throughout the run-up to the election than any other.

Ellie herself told the Hereford Times this morning that she puts her general election victory in North Herefordshire down to sustained teamwork.

And I think she is right.