South Yorkshire general election count – behind the scenes

As dawn breaks over South Yorkshire, a teary-eyed Sarah Champion raises her hands and shouts “we’ve done it people, we’ve done it”.

She’s one of many Labor candidates who’ve rebuilt the so-called Red Wall, vote by vote. BBC News was at Rotherham Leisure Complex and Sheffield’s English Institute of Sport to watch the sprint finish in this year’s general election.

This track has seen lots of winners and losers – normally though it’s athletes dipping for the line.

Tonight, rows and rows of tables cover the blue floor, but people here will still be whipping up a sweat in the race for a seat in the House of Commons.

Before I’m even through the door at the EIS, two people gather around a phone, watching the BBC coverage as the exit poll is announced. Labor landslide, the ticker on the bottom of the screen says.

But that’s not the topic of conversation for the Press who have gathered on the benches at the side of the track. Reform is predicted to pick up more seats than expected. The word of the moment? “Wow”.

As the first ballot boxes begin to arrive, people can’t take their eyes off the two massive TV screens on the counting floor. Candidates are pacing, phones to their ears, relaying information to their team, and families.

The number of constituencies here means the counting is split between two rooms; the athletics track, and the netball hall, 40 paces away.

Incumbent Conservative MP Miriam Cates has been fighting for her seat in Penistone and Stocksbridge for six weeks now. She’s ready for a long night, it seems, even bringing her own camping chair.

Her team’s snacks of choice appear to be Haribo sweets, cupcakes and millionaire shortbread biscuits, but she’s spent most of her time tapping away on her phone or talking to colleagues to worry about them.

The TV behind her has shown the first result to come in – a Labor win in Sunderland South

The cupcakes have just been opened.

As verification takes place in Sheffield, I make the 11-minute drive to Rotherham. This is an area used to be red. Rotherham has been Labor since 1933. Rother Valley had been a red seat for 100 years, before turning Conservative in 2019 in a big swing, with Alexander Stafford winning.

As I arrive in the packed car park, the security guard greets me with a slice of takeaway pizza hanging out of his mouth. “I’ll be here for a long night,” he laughs.

The counting hall at the town’s leisure complex is hot, packed with volunteers furiously flicking through papers.

Reform UK candidate Tony Harrison, who’s standing in the Rother Valley seat, tells us he’s buoyed by the exit polls for Barnsley North and South, which suggest a win for the party in both constituencies.

“It’s looking quite positive,” he says.

When asked why he thinks that is, he adds: “Quite strange times, I think it all stems from Brexit. There was a high Brexit vote in Barnsley.”

But Labor councilor Chris Read, leader of Rotherham Council, pours cold water on the excitement, saying not to judge the exit polls “too soon”, and wants to wait for “the real votes” to be counted.

He’s right. There’s a huddle around a TV in the leisure center reception area as the results come in, coupled with a cheer from the Labor members. I think most of that cheer was relief.

Talk turns to how the exit polls could have been so wrong for Barnsley – with predictions for both seats thousands of votes out.

Back in Sheffield, the results come in almost like football scores – back-to-back-to-back.

So quick in fact, the losing candidates seem to evaporate while the winners – who were all Labor – celebrated on the podium.

“Keep the red flag flying high”, sing Labor supporters, as the large TV behind them announces Rishi Sunak has conceded the election.

Minutes later, the hall is empty and the clean-up operation begins. In the stands, the final few donuts are passed round to the last journalists standing.

Overnight, we’ve seen the decimation of the Conservative Party, seat by seat.

It’s all quiet now here in Sheffield, and the tables and chairs are starting to be packed away.

No time for celebrating for the winners though – there’s a school sports day happening here later today and we’re being kicked out of the building. The glamor of politics in full swing.