The Conservative Party has won half the seats in the Taunton Deane Council election.

They gained three seats to control 28 of the 56 seats.

LibDems were three seats down on their 2007 total at 23 seats.

The Labour Party has two seats, the Labour and Co-operative Party one seat and there are two independents.

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That leaves the Conservatives as the largest party and only needing to team up with one of minority party councillors to have a working majority.

For a commentary on the results, as they happened, see below.

THE Conservatives are hoping to take on the leadership of Taunton Deane Council - despite falling one seat short of an overall majority.

The Tories are the largest group after winning 28 of the available seats.

Cllr John Williams said: "We're the largest party and I believe it's right that we should put ourselves forward as the continuing administration."

He said he would need to "reflect on where we are" before deciding whether his party needed to striek a deal with anyone else.

Mr Williams added: "I'm very pleased with the results, although I'm disappointed not to have an overall majority.

"If we'd received one more councillor, we'd have had an overall majority of one.

"But working with 28 Conservative councillors has to be better than the system of the last year when we had 26.

"I'm looking forward to the future with optimism."

LibDem leader Cllr Ross Henley said his personal delight at being re-elected to the council was tempered by his disappointment at his party not winning a majority.

He added: "We need to reflect - we're very tired after a long campaign.

"At this stage it's far too early to contemplate or debate what happens."

Labour's Andrew Govier - whose party has three seats compared to just one last time - said: "I'm pleased by that.

"There are a few other seats we'd like to have won.

"We closed the gap elsewhere."

Town and Parish Council election results will follow later today in our online election results service, as will the result of the Alternative Vote poll.

Former Conservative leader of the district council John Williams has been re-elected.

In Bishop's Hull the LibDem's have taken one of the two seats from the Conservatives.

The two LibDem Eastgate seats and the three in Halcon have been held.

In Comeytrowe, the LibDems have held their three seats.

In Killams and Mountfield, the two Conservative seats have been held.

The Conservatives have held their seats in Monument, and Milverton and North Deane.

In North Curry and Stoke St Gregory, indepedent David House has lost his seat to LibDem Gill Slattery (who joins her husband Tim (Halcon) on the council). The other seat in the ward was held by the LibDems.

The Conservatives have held their two seats in Norton Fitzwarren.

In Ruishton and Creech, Conservative father and daughter Dave and Kelly Durdan have held their seats while in Trull, Conservative Mark Edwards easily held his seat.

In Wellington East, LibDem leader Ross Henley held his seat but fellow LibDem and former town mayor Peter Critchard lost his seat to Conservative James Hunt by seven votes.

In Wellington North, Andrew Govier retained his seat but the ward also returned his wife Jackie, both for Labour, at the expense of LibDem Gloria Copley. John Thorne, who helped run the election campaign of Taunton Deane Conservative Parliamentary candidate Mark Formosa last year, also lost out.

After the count, Mr Thorne said: "I’m delighted with the strength of the Conservative vote in Wellington North, which has significantly increased since the last election and reflects the Wellington community’s wider confidence in the Conservative Party by awarding us four of the seven Deane council seats in the town.

"I’m equally delighted that my successor in Blackdown ward, David Reed, has worked hard to increase the size of the Conservative vote in the ward, so that it is now well over 50%.”

Wiveliscombe's two seats stay independent, represented by Eddie Gaines and Stephen Ross, who steps into the shoes of independent Mary Whitmarsh, who didn't stand.

The three LibDem seats in Blackbrook and Holway and the three in Comeytrowe and the three in Fairwater and the three in Pyrland and Rowbarton have been held by the Libdems. In Fairwater, current mayor Jefferson Horsley retained his seat.

The Blackdown seat has been held by the Conservatives.

In Lyngford, the LibDems have lost one of their three seats to Libby Lisgo, of the Labour and Co-operative Party.

The two Conservative Staplegrove seats have been retained, as have the three in Manor and Wilton.

The three Conservative seats in Bishops Lydeard were held and Conservatives gained two, one from the LibDems and one independent, in Wellington Rockwell Green and West.

The Conservatives held their three seats in West Monkton.

Keep visiting this site for more results.