Dame Andrea Jenkyns has secured victory for Reform UK after winning the Mayoral election in Greater Lincolnshire.In her victory speech, Jenkyns took aim at the "soul destroying" campaigns made against her, and the "two-tier system" that has currently "broken Britain".WATCH ABOVE.
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00:00And I do hereby declare that the said Andrea Marie Jenkins is duly elected as Mayor to the Greater Lincolnshire Combined Council Authority.
00:16Wow, what a long night. Thank you.
00:22To the people of Lincolnshire, thank you for putting your trust in me.
00:26I will work tirelessly for you every day.
00:31To the council officers and everybody in this room who's shattered, I thank you as well.
00:39I thank my big sister, who's also my agent.
00:43You know, she's a walking miracle.
00:45She nearly died, was in a coma 18 months ago and was told she'd never walk again.
00:51And she's here today and she's my election agent.
00:56To my team, to Max and the team, and all my amazing reform volunteers who's pounded the streets, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
01:07Now to Nigel, to Richard and to Zia, I thank you for your friendship, for your support, and getting me through these last few difficult weeks.
01:17I'm immensely proud to be part of the reform family.
01:22So thank you for welcoming me.
01:24And thank you to my friend Gloria, who's in the audience, for keeping me sane.
01:29Now I've fought many elections.
01:32Four general elections, my third local election.
01:36But I'm going to be brief with this, don't worry.
01:38I've never experienced such negativity and soul-destroying campaigns against me like this one.
01:45It was soul-destroying.
01:46The dirty tricks in the US politics, I believe it's now been imported here into Britain.
01:55The Conservatives called the police on me and implied I slept with political friends.
02:01They contacted the mainstream media to smear me.
02:05The independent's husband pushed for a hearing at the council.
02:09My barrister had to represent me.
02:11The case was dismissed.
02:13The campaign was also filled with irony.
02:16As one of the candidates stated, I was parachuted in.
02:19She said in her South African accent.
02:23Now, they undemocratically tried to remove me from the ballot.
02:27But I will say no more on this, and I wish them all well.
02:34Because this is insignificant now, and I'll draw a line under it.
02:39Now, ladies and gentlemen, we have a new dawn in British politics.
02:46Is that a sign?
02:49The rebuilding begins here.
02:52Now, Britain, we're going to have a Britain
02:56where we put British people first,
02:58where we put you and your families first.
03:01We make sure that you are in front of the queue,
03:04and you are at the heart of our policy decisions.
03:08Today, we as reform,
03:11as we're making gains up and down the country,
03:14you will see an end to soft-touch Britain.
03:17The fight back to save the heart and soul of our great country
03:21has now begun.
03:23Now that reform is in a place of power,
03:27we can help start rebuilding Britain.
03:31Inch by inch, reform will reset Britain to its glorious past.
03:37We will tackle illegal migration.
03:41We've been working on policies.
03:44I say no to putting people in hotels.
03:47Tents are good enough for France.
03:49They should be good enough for here in Britain.
03:51But I take my hat off to our great leader, Nigel.
03:56Now, he has fought for decades,
03:59and he still fights for you here today.
04:03And I know one day he will make a magnificent Prime Minister.
04:07Now, to the people of Lincolnshire, I will fight for you.
04:15I will not shy away from asking tough questions
04:19and challenging the two-tier system that has broken Britain.
04:24With me as your mayor, I will always put you first.
04:28I will keep your taxes low.
04:30I will work with you, with our industries, with our business, and with our young people.
04:34And together, it's time to heal.
04:36We will deliver a once-in-a-generation change.
04:39I will lead with a sword of common sense and cut through wastage and bureaucracy.
04:44I will fight for the heart and soul for our farmers against this god-awful Labour government.
04:52And I will fight against the destruction of our countryside by Ed Miliband.
04:56I will fight to ensure Lincolnshire is the best place to live, to work, and retire.
05:04But most importantly, as a mum to my precious gift in the world, my seven-year-old son Clifford,
05:11just as I fight for him and his future, I will fight for your children's future.
05:17I will fight for your children's future in this great county that I grew up.