HISTORY was made as the first female Asian councillors were elected in Blackburn with Darwen.

Cllrs Saima Afzal and Maryam Batan were among the 37 Labour candidates chosen by voters to take seats on the council on what proved to be a good day for the red half of the borough.

The Conservatives secured 13 seats while Lib Dem Roy Davies will be the party's lone voice on the council, leaving Labour with a 24-seat majority.

Everything was up for grabs in Blackburn with Darwen Council's election as it was fought on new boundaries and several senior politicians retired.

With just 17 three-member wards instead of 23 represented by 64 councillors, party strategists had to rethink tactics to take account of the new map.

There were shocks in Billinge & Beardwood - an expected Tory stronghold where Labour's Tasleem Fazal and Jackie Floyd took two of the three seats, leaving current Blackburn Conservative Association chairman Imtiaz Ali and his predecessor Sabir Esa to miss out.

And Labour exec member Arshid Mahmood missed out by just 100 votes.

The party's control of the borough was confirmed before dinner as a clean sweep saw Labour take 27 out of 27 seats announced over the course of the morning.

Cllr Afzal, a former assistant police and crime commissioner for Lancashire, stood as a Labour candidate in different Blackburn wards in 1999, 2000 and 2001 - coming second each time.

She said: "I started this journey 19 years ago in 1999. This is my fourth election. It's fantastic for democracy and great news for women everywhere.

"The hard work starts now as everyone will be watching us. I am here to represent all communities re3gardless of how they voted.

"I'm very proud to be the first Asian woman elected to Blackburn with Darwen Council."

Cllr Batan added: "I am absolutely delighted. This is great for Asian women. It shows that Panorama got this borough absolutely wrong."

Tory group leader Cllr John Slater, who was returned to his seat in Blackburn South & Lower Darwen, said it was a mixed bag for his party.

"I was disappointed to lose a good councillor in Beardwood but absolutely over the moon with the message that has been sent to Blackburn Labour that they are not welcome in Darwen.

"We secured nine seats out of 15 and we are the majority there. We have had some absolutely fantastic results and we had some close losses in Darwen West where we are disappointed not to have won.

"It can only bode well for the future. Blackburn Labour treated Darwen with disdain and the voters have reflected that."

Blackburn MP Kate Hollern said: "I'm really pleased for Saima Afzal and Maryam Batan but I'm also disappointed for Arshid Mahmood, who was a really good, hard-working councillor.

"Overall it was a good result for Labour and I'm very pleased for Kieran Richards in Darwen. It's been a great day."

Notable retirements included husband-and-wife team of Liberal Democrat leader David Foster and Karimeh, both former borough Mayors with more than 25 years each representing Whitehall in Darwen.

They joined former Tory council leader Mike Lee, Labour executive member for health Mustafa Ali Desai, former Mayor of Blackburn and Mayor of Darwen Town Councils Eileen Entwistle and 2013/14's borough Mayor Salim Mulla in standing down.

BLACKBURN WITH DARWEN COUNCIL ELECTION RESULTS

Audley & Queen's Park

Lab - Maryam Batan - 1,515 - ELECTED

Lab - Yusuf Jan-Virmani - 1,528 - ELECTED

Green - Tariq Khan - 316

Con - Zafar-Ul Malik - 308

Con - Lee Parker - 219

Lab - Salim Sidat - 1,484 - ELECTED

Bastwell & Daisyfield

Lab - Parwaiz Akhtar - 2,192 - ELECTED

Con - Michaely Coker - 183

Con - Andrew Eastham - 193

Lab - Iftakhar Hussain - 2,114 - ELECTED

Lab - Shaukat Hussain - 2,075 - ELECTED

Con - Francis Winkley Riding - 166

Billinge & Beardwood

Con - Imtiaz Ali - 1,080

Con - Julie Daley - 1,206 - ELECTED

Con - Sabir Esa - 1,159

Lab - Tasleem Fazal - 1,273 - ELECTED

Lab - Jackie Floyd - 1,192 - ELECTED

Lab - Arshid Mahmood - 1,182

Blackburn Central

Lab - Saima Afzal - 1,174 - ELECTED

Lab - Faryad Hussain - 1,127 - ELECTED

Lab - Zamir Khan - 1,215 - ELECTED

Con - Abdul Makda - 326

Con - Rizwana Sindhu - 236

Con - Filip Szary - 218

Blackburn South & Lower Darwen

Con - Denise Gee - 1,029  - ELECTED

Lab - Matt Gibson - 645

Lab - Tony Humphrys - 624

Lab - Carl Nuttall - 610

Con - Jacquie Slater - 1,055 - ELECTED

Con - John Slater - 1,014 - ELECTED

Blackburn South East

Con - Joan Bamber - 346

Con - Athshaam Hussain - 263

Lab - Andy Kay - 811 - ELECTED

UKIP - Michael Madigan - 280

Lab - Vicky McGurk - 773 - ELECTED

Lab - Jim Shorrock - 826 - ELECTED

Darwen East

Lib Dem - Paul Browne - 723

Lib Dem - Roy Davies - 800 - ELECTED

Lab - Jane Oates - 828 - ELECTED

Con - Lynn Perkins - 293

Lab - Kieran Richards - 750 - ELECTED

Lab - Katrina Shepherd - 714

Con - Ryan Slater - 341

Con - Emily Topping - 265

Darwen South

Lab - Lee Ball - 624

Con - Kevin Connor - 934 - ELECTED

Lab - Morgan Crawshaw - 577

Lib Dem - Joan Hepple - 545

Lib Dem - Simon Huggill - 574

Lab - Sarah Rose - 598

Con - Lilian Salton - 817 - ELECTED

Con - Neil Slater - 874 - ELECTED

Darwen West

Lab - Stephanie Brookfield - 1,146 - ELECTED

UKIP - Ian Grimshaw - 131

Con - Joe Morgan - 997

Lab - David Smith - 1,344 - ELECTED

Con - Konrad Tapp - 1,096

Lab - Brian Taylor - 1,237 - ELECTED

Con - Andrew Walker - 1,056

Ewood

Lab - Maureen Bateson - 993 - ELECTED

Lab - Jim Casey - 889 - ELECTED

Lab - Jamie Groves - 928 - ELECTED

Con - Maureen McGarvey - 634

Con - Keith Murray - 680

Con - Martin Needham - 583

Little Harwood & Whitebirk

Con - Asad Iqbal - 380

Lab - Pat McFall - 1,550 - ELECTED

UKIP - Arlene Noone - 193

Lab - Abdul Patel - 1,533 - ELECTED

Con - Ismail Patel - 356

Lab - Naushad Surve - 1,490 - ELECTED

Con - David Walsh - 414

Livesey with Pleasington

Con - Derek Hardman - 1,629 - ELECTED

Lab - Pete Hollings - 623

Con - Paul Marrow - 1,578 - ELECTED

Lab - Paul Rigby - 560

Con - John Pearson - 1,583 - ELECTED

Lab - Ashley Whalley - 560

Mill Hill & Moorgate

Lab - Julie Gunn - 948 - ELECTED

UKIP - Michael Longbottom - 236

Con - Judith Pearson - 494

Con - Mark Russell - 537

Lab - Jim Smith - 959 - ELECTED

Lab - Damian Talbot - 903 - ELECTED

Con - Ann Tolley - 510

Shear Brow & Corporation Park

Lab - Hussain Akhtar - 1,947 - ELECTED

Lab - Mahfooz Hussain - 1,547 - ELECTED

Lab - Suleman Khonat - 2,270 - ELECTED

Con - Mark Marrow - 255

Ind - Muntazir Patel - 960

Con - Naseer Sajid - 325

Con - Helen Voegt - 583

Roe Lee

Con - Bilal Afzal - 802

Con - Asghar Ali - 783

Lab - Sylvia Liddle - 1,253 - ELECTED

Lab - Phil Riley - 1,292 - ELECTED

Con - Tommy Temperley - 875

Lab - Ron Whittle - 1,222 - ELECTED

Wensley Fold

Green - Robin Field - 403

Lab - Dave Harling - 1781 - ELECTED

Lab - Mohammed Khan - 1853 - ELECTED

Lab - Quesir Mahmood - 1742 - ELECTED

Con - Tariq Mahmood - 415

Con - Mags Morrow - 314

Con - Ghulam Sabir - 248

West Pennine

Lib Dem - John East - 581

Lab - David Hollings - 648

Lab - Matt Jackson - 702

Con - Colin Rigby - 1411 - ELECTED

Con - Jean Rigby - 1369 - ELECTED

Lab - Jude Rowley - 697

Con - Julie Slater - 1540 - ELECTED

Turnout was 36.2 per cent.