POLLING stations across Swindon opened at 7am this morning as the first wave of voters made their mark on the election, the town being the focus for much of the nation’s media tonight.

Interest is high in one of the election’s key seats and, after weeks of campaigning, the time has now come for people to decide who is going to represent them in parliament.

The polls will be open until 10pm after which all ballot boxes will be taken to the Oasis for the count.

Turnout is expected to be high with pollsters predicting a close race in South Swindon. As well as parliamentary elections, there are also local and parish elections taking place.

Results are expected in the early hours of Friday morning

You can follow what happens on a live blog here from 11pm at www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk, giving updates from the Oasis including the results of every count, reaction from the candidates and information as to what the results mean for Swindon.

It is believed around 30 journalists from the BBC, Sky and ITV, as well as local media outlets, will descend on the Oasis where the count is taking place.

The special attention will put even more pressure on all those overseeing the election, but so far everything has gone to plan.

Polling cards have all been delivered, volunteers have been trained and the ballot boxes are ready to go.

“Everything has been relatively smooth and things seem to be fine so we are hoping for no last minute hiccups,” said Sally Sprason, the deputy returning officer, who has been working to make sure everything goes to plan.

“Preparations are good and we are all on track for the count. It is now just a case of hoping everything goes to plan on the day.”

In total, around 600 volunteers will be overseeing the election, from those who are manning the polling booths to others who will be taking part in the count. Over the past few months each of them has had training to ensure they know what they are doing.

The polls open at 7am and will close at 10pm, meaning it is set to be a long day for everyone involved. 

Once the polls close, all the boxes will be taken to the Oasis where the media, as well as candidates and their supporters, will eagerly await the results.

The ballot papers for the parliamentary, local and parish elections will then have to be verified before the count begins.

North Swindon will be counted first, followed by South Swindon and then the local elections will follow.

Sally said: “There is certainly a lot of interest in Swindon this year because it is predicted to be so close, especially in South Swindon.

“But another reason perhaps is because we are hoping to have results before much of the rest of the country. We are hoping to have the North Swindon result no later than 1am, and then to have the South result at around 2.30am.

“From then on we will have the local results when they are counted. This though is by no means certain and any recounts would change this.”

To accommodate all the counters, candidates, supporters and assorted media, preparations at the Oasis are underway.

The count will take place in the main gym which will be divided into a counting area, a public area and a media area.

There will also be radio and camera crews feeding back results to central studios so the whole country can be kept informed of the result.

“In 2010 there was a lot of interest in Swindon because I think it is seen as a signal for the rest of the country,” said Sally.

“Once again there is a lot of focus which will add to the interest. It’s going to be a long day but an exciting one if everything goes to plan.”