A HAMMER blow was dealt to the Liberal Democrats at Wiltshire Council on Friday as their group leader Glenis Ansell was ousted from her Calne North spot in the local elections.

The Liberal Democrat was left stunned after Calne’s former mayor Tom Rounds of the Conservatives was elected with 459 votes compared to her 380 votes, with Jon Fisher of Labour collecting 172 votes.

However Mrs Ansell, who will continue as a Calne town councillor for the next four years, channelled her inner Arnold Schwarzenegger, saying that she would be back and would continue to serve her community to the best of her ability.

"I am very disappointed as I worked quite hard in my ward and tried to represent my community to the best of my ability but unfortunately that was not enough in the end," she said.

"I have to say I was surprised by the vote. The reaction I got when I was out campaigning was positive so it was hard to take. I want to congratulate Mr Rounds and I wish him the best for the future.

"When you are in politics you go through a lot of ups and downs and this falls into the latter category. Even if you believe in what you are doing you have to respect how the electorate vote.

"Despite this setback I will continue to do my utmost as a town councillor. This is certainly not the end. To quote Arnold Schwarzenegger, "I will be back.'"

Mrs Ansell was elected back in 2013 and made Liberal Democrat group leader in 2015, a role she has thoroughly enjoyed.

“It has been an honour and a privilege to serve the community over the last few years and to lead the party at Wiltshire Council,” said coun Ansell, who is busy organising next month’s Calne Fest.”

“I have worked with some fantastic councillors from many different parties over the years and it has been wonderful experience. We still have 20 Liberal Democrats at Wiltshire Council who will continue to hold the Conservatives to account.”

The turnout was 1,014 votes, which was 30.77 per cent of the electorate and three of the votes were spoiled.