In the end it was a procession, with the SNP’s Shona Robison securing another term as MSP for Dundee City East.
Ms Robison already had the security of 10,000 strong majority from the 2011 election and her party’s star has been on the rise ever since.
She said the Holyrood election campaign had gone “really well” and thanked “a great team” who had helped get the party’s message across.
“We were taking nothing for granted and worked really hard to get everyone out to vote,” she told The Courier.
“We had really good feedback on the doorstep.
“Our campaign has focused on local and national priorities, including the need to continue Dundee’s regeneration in terms of bringing jobs to the city.
“It’s been a really positive campaign in general.”
Full results for Dundee City East
SNP 16509
Labour 5611
Conservative 4969
Lib Dems 911
TUSC 437— Paul Malik (@C_PMalik) May 6, 2016
It was a bad night for Labour candidate Richard McCready and the party in general, with glum faces visible from early in the evening.
The party’s share of the vote dropped significantly, with one SNP member saying Labour had been “struggling against the tide”.
Mr McCready admitted that the election had been “tough for Labour” but said he believed the message had gotten through to voters that the SNP was not doing enough to stand up for Dundee and secure jobs for the city.
For the Conservatives, meanwhile, the night was a qualified success, with the party securing an increased share of the vote,
The vote is said to have been particularly strong in Broughty Ferry.
Ms Robison and party aides counselled against overconfidence throughout the count at a busy DISC, but in reality there was always little prospect of a surprise.
Away from the buzz of the hall, where around 200 people worked to count the votes, there was a palpable calm in the corridors, with the SNP’s confidence in victory meaning campaigners, councillors and staff were as much at ease as it is possible to be.
Among those happy with the local election campaign was Dundee City Council Leader Ken Guild.
He said the level of support for the SNP across the Dundee City East had been clear to see.
“It has been a very good campaign. The response to our candidates and campaigners on the doorstep was very positive.
“In contrast, there was very little evidence of support for Labour.”
Despite the positivity from the SNP campaign team, the high voting turnouts of the Referendum and General Election were forgotten as Dundonians went to the polls in lesser numbers than they did in May.
Across the city, 122 polling stations opened for business, including 23 schools, and though business picked-up as the day wore on, they were regularly described as “quiet”.
From around 70% turnout during the General Election, just 28,545 candidate votes were eventually counted for Dundee City East – representing 51.6% of eligible voters.
Nonetheless, is a marked improvement on the 2011 Scottish Elections, when a little over 47% of those eligible cast their vote.
