THURROCK Council leader Cllr Rob Gledhill mustered his troops for a hard battle in the Little Thurrock Rectory ward but in the end he once more maintained the dominance he has shown since first being elected there in 2006.

Then he won by 534 votes and while this latest margin of victory was more reminiscent of his 2014 scare when UKIP ran him within 139 votes of defeat, a majority of 157 was not to be sneezed at in the context of the election campaign.

Result:

• Rob Gledhill (Conservative) 765
• Aaron Green (Labour) 608

Majority 157

Electorate: 4,546. Ballot Papers Issued: 1,388. Turnout: 30.53%