Senedd election 2021: Masks and social distancing have dampened the excitement of the count
ITV Wales correspondents Hannah Thomas and Rob Osborne reflect on Senedd election results day
Words by Hannah Thomas
As elections go, you could call me a bit of a modern veteran.
I did my first election count as a reporter during the General Election of 2010, when I was sent to cover the Bridgend count.
A year later, I was in Blaenau Gwent when Alun Davies reclaimed the constituency for Labour in the Senedd from a short period of Independent dominance.
From then on, I have worked every election count going - General, Senedd and local. But none of them have been like this one.
By now you have usually got a sense of what's going to happen and where.
I was in the Rhondda when the then Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood ousted Labour's Leighton Andrews, and the sense of movement there was palpable. You could feel it building through the night. The vibe and buzz of anticipation kept you going when you had just finished the last chocolate bar from your packed lunch.
But today it feels very quiet.
There are far far fewer people around in the sports hall here in Ebbw Vale than there would usually be. The election agents are being kept to a minimum, and given the challenges of social distancing and mask wearing, they cannot easily give you an indication of how things are going.
I am writing this from my laptop in the press room upstairs, because other than to test communications with the gallery in Cardiff before we go live at 1.55pm with Wales Decides on ITV Cymru Wales, I am not allowed to walk around freely and get a steer on how the result is looking.
Of course the safety of everyone is paramount, and every measure needs to be in place.
But it does put a dampener on things. Covid has made the usual fizz of election results day feel just a little bit flat - for now at least.
Words by Rob Osborne
Elections are healthy for democracy but they are not healthy for reporters.
In front of me I've all sorts of sugary items there for one reason - to keep me awake.
I am at the Cardiff count. It has a reputation for being late. "When we will get a result?" I keep asking. Nobody, has an answer. "Maybe 3" someone says knowing full well it won't be.
Cardiff has four constituencies. Labour hold them all and are expected to hold them all again. They include Cardiff West, the First Minister's seat and Cardiff South and Penarth, the seat of Vaughan Gething the Health Minister.
One thing we know is that Mark Darkeford will stand down as First Minister (if re-elected) and leader of Welsh Labour in about 2 years time.
The question is will we still be waiting for the Cardiff counts to declare before 2023?