The slow process of verifying, counting and recording votes is beginning across the region.

Here's a few councils getting ready to start emptying boxes and begin the count:

Election results this year will come over days rather than a huge return overnight as traditionally happens.

This has been prompted by social distancing and safety around coronavirus.

Above is the scene at Lincoln's County Assembly Rooms where the count is taking place for Lincolnshire County, City of Lincoln and Police and Crime Commissioner elections.

Karen Lee, below, is the former Labour MP for Lincoln. She lost her seat in 2019's general election.

She's standing for a seat in the Ermine and Cathedral division of Lincolnshire County Council.

Counters and candidates are separated by screens and candidates are only allowed one supporter with them to keep numbers to a minimum.

Image source, BBC Sport

A North Yorkshire farmer has been elected as the new Conservative MP for Hartlepool.

Jill Mortimer lives near Thirsk, about 30 miles from Hartlepool, and is a district councillor on Hambleton Council.

She beat Labour's Paul Williams by almost 7,000 votes, polling 15,529 votes in total and becomes the town's first female MP.

It's the first time since the seat was created in 1974 that voters have returned a Conservative MP.

Ms Mortimer hailed her victory as a "truly historic" result, and pledged to "work tirelessly" for the town.

She said people in the town have "had enough" of Labour, and had "made it clear it's time for a change".

You can read more here.

Labour's Ros Jones was re-elected mayor in Doncaster - but this time she required second preference votes to get over the line.

Image source, LDRS

Ms Jones polled 27,669 first preference votes - almost 10,000 more than Conservative challenger James Hart.

However, that fell just short of the 50% needed from a turnout of 63,183.

That mean second preference votes for Ms Jones and Mr Hart were counted.

Ms Jones recorded just over 3,500 while Mr Hart's tally was just over 3,000.

That gave Ms Jones a total of 31,232 votes compared to the Conservative's 21,019.

In the 2017 election, Ms Jones scored 51% of first preference votes with 32,631 ballots and didn't need the second count for victory.

The Conservative candidate George Jabbour recorded a total of 13,575 votes.

What will that mean for the council elections? Local Democracy Reporter George Torr has his own thoughts:

BBC Weather

Today there will be sunny spells but patchy cloud will linger in places.

Showers, which will be heavy at times, will develop through the afternoon.

Tonight will be chilly with any showers easing to leave clear skies:

Labour's Ros Jones has been re-elected as the Mayor of Doncaster after the count went to second preferences because no candidate managed over 50% of the vote.

Image source, LDRS

Ms Jones will be Doncaster’s mayor for a third term having won with a majority of more than10,000.

She received 48.3% on the first ballot (27,669 votes) and a further 3,563 votes when second choices were counted, giving her a total of 31,232 votes.

Image source, Doncaster Council

Ms Jones, who was supported by Labour MP Ed Miliband, said she would "fight for every town and village".

Speaking after the result, Jones said: “I would like to thank those residents of Doncaster who have voted for me.

"I am privileged and humbled to lead our beloved borough as the Labour mayor for a third term."

Her nearest challenger, Conservative James Hart, received 21,019 votes in total with 28.4% of the vote in the first round.

Labour's Ros Jones has been re-elected as Mayor of Doncaster.

Image source, LDRS

It's the third time she's stood for the position she's held since 2013.

Ms Jones who received 31,232 first and second preference votes has vowed "to lead Doncaster's recovery as coronavirus restrictions start to be eased".

Conservative candidate, the former Tickhill and Wadworth councillor, James Hart, received the second largest number of votes with 21,019.

Speaking after the result was announced Ros Jones said: "Doncaster is a wonderful borough, but it can be so much more if we all work together.

"I promise I will work for all our communities and continue to fight for our borough to make it a place where people want to live, visit, raise their children and leave no one behind."

Counts for most of the other elections in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire are expected to start later this morning.

Dean Wilson is aiming to post 1,000 pictures of his "pebble of the day" discoveries.

An amateur drone photographer captures an unusual angle on a Yorkshire seaside landmark.

Hessle High School set up the dress and suit hire after a girl could not afford to attend its prom.

Chenise Gregory and Michael McGibbon were found dead in a hotel room in Harrogate on Tuesday.

Several orphaned ducklings were saved from almost certain death on a West Yorkshire roadside when rescuers lured them to safety with the help of a YouTube video.

Image source, Caroline Appleby

Caroline Appleby, 38, from Leeds, responded to a plea to rescue the two-week-old babies after their mother was found dead after being hit by a vehicle on Carr Lane in Calverley on Tuesday.

Ms Appleby's best friend Keeley Parsons played them a recording of a mother duck to lead them to a safer place.

The pair were praised on social media with the rescue described as "brilliant".

Ms Appleby said: "As I got there, Keeley was on her hands and knees in the bushes as the ducklings had hid themselves."

Struggling to get them out of the bushes, the pair turned to a YouTube video of a mother duck calling.

She added: "The ducklings are quite fast, incredibly fast actually. We used this recording and we managed to successfully get four of them out.

"They recognise that obviously it's either their siblings or mother calling. They just came out in a line, bless them.

"We just couldn't have left them. They'd have died if we hadn't have rescued them."

The ducklings are now living in a chick warmer at Ms Appleby's house.

Andrew Hall was involved in a "violent struggle" with police and later died, an inquest hears.

High performance cars hired for a funeral procession were driven dangerously along pavements and into oncoming traffic in South Yorkshire, police say.

Image source, South Yorkshire Police

Pedestrians were forced to flee as the procession made its way from Bolsover to Shiregreen Cemetery in Sheffield, police said.

The event had been organised to celebrate the lives of two Sheffield men - 19-year-old Jordan Caster (pictured above) and a 22-year-old named locally as Tyrone Forde - who were killed in a crash on the M1 on Easter Sunday.

The families of the two friends organised a joint funeral service and the procession involved cars, motorbikes and quad bikes.

South Yorkshire Police said the force had received a number of calls from people reporting dangerous driving during the event on 28 April.

One person posted on Facebook group Sheffield Online, external: "Sad that a tragedy was hijacked as an excuse for dangerous driving, not to mention extremely tasteless in the circumstances."

Another person commented: "We saw bikers riding on the pavement, vehicles travelling on the wrong side of the road and people hanging out their car windows."

Sgt Matt Duffy said: "People were there that day to pay their respects and commemorate the lives of their loved ones.

"However, the manner of driving demonstrated by a handful of those attending meant they not only posed a risk to themselves, but to other members of the procession and members of the public en route."

Police have appealed for any CCTV or dashcam footage of the driving.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

A boat has been found fly-tipped by the side of a road - almost seven miles inland from the Humber estuary.

Image source, Ross Jump

Councillor Ros Jump, independent ward member for Cottingham North, said she found the boat stripped of its engine and parts on Dunswell Lane close to the A1079 flyover.

The boat, which appears to be a pleasure craft, is classed as a small ship and bears the registration number SSR 64899 on its side.

The councillor said the boat had been tipped well away from any waterways, adding the culprits were too "lazy" to destroy it.

Councillor Jump said: "It’s just been left by the side of the road, you couldn’t make it up. It’s nowhere near any rivers or lakes."

An East Riding Council spokesperson said waste disposal teams had been alerted to the dumping and were in the process of removing the boat, with an investigation also under way.

The spokesperson added: "Throughout the pandemic, officers from the council have continued to investigate incidents of fly-tipping throughout the East Riding and will continue to deal with any offenders proactively."

Police are appealing for witnesses after a gun was fired at a house in Leeds.

Image source, Google

A door was damaged by the shot in Woodview Mount, Beeston, sometime between 15:00 and 19:00 on Saturday 1 May, according to West Yorkshire Police.

No-one was injured in the incident, police said

Det Ch Insp Fiona Gaffney said: "We have specialist detectives carrying out extensive inquiries to establish the full circumstances of this incident to identify those responsible.

“We would like to hear from anyone who witnessed anything at the time on Saturday night."

A Lincolnshire arts venue hit by the Covid-19 pandemic and a loss of funding has been saved from permanent closure by a takeover, it's been confirmed.

Image source, Google

Lincoln Drill Hall, which hosted concerts, shows and community events, closed last March during the first lockdown.

It's now been taken over by Lincoln College Group (LCG) and will continue to host live performances, as well as conferences and exhibitions.

The hall, which was built in 1890 to accommodate military training, has played host to scores of famous names over the years, including legendary punk bands Buzzcocks and Stiff Little Fingers.

Comedians Russell Howard and Marcus Brigstocke have also performed there.

LCG's commercial managing director James Foster said: "We're hugely excited about becoming the guardians of a real cultural jewel for the arts and live entertainment."

The Drill Hall, previously run by the Lincoln Arts Trust, is expected to reopen in December with a production of Aladdin.

A dog from Wakefield has had to undergo a three-hour operation after eating 30 PPE gloves.

Image source, Vets4pets

Rambo the Rottweiler was taken to see vets by his owner Darren Coyne after he was sick and brought up one of the gloves.

The dog was referred for an endoscopy in Leeds where vets removed a further 29 gloves during the procedure.

Mr Coyne, who kept a box of gloves in his car for work, said Rambo must have eaten them while travelling to and from walks.

Keith Leonard, who carried out the operation, said though Rambo arrived "seemingly without a care in the world" Mr Coyne's quick thinking had "saved his life".

"Each time we pulled a glove out, we went back to check it was the last one and found another one, it was something we've never seen or heard of before," he said.

Mr Coyne, who works at the Holiday Inn in Leeds, said he believed Rambo must have been secretly eating the gloves in the car.

"When he was sick with one glove I instantly recognised it and searched the car for any evidence of him eating anything else.

"I can't thank [the vets] enough for how they helped Rambo, particularly as he seemed to be his normal self and oblivious to the dangerous situation he was in."

Rambo was discharged from the Vets4Pets hospital in Leeds less then 12 hours after arriving and has since made a full recovery.

A teenage boy and three men have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after another man is believed to have been shot in South Yorkshire.

Image source, Google

Police were called to reports of a disturbance and firearms discharge on Aldesworth Road in Cantley, Doncaster, at about 11:20 this morning.

A short time later, officers were told that a 30-year-old man had arrived at Doncaster Royal Infirmary with what was thought to be a gunshot injury, according to South Yorkshire Police.

The man remains in a serious but stable condition, officers say.

Armed response officers were deployed to Cantley and they arrested a 15-year-old boy and three men aged 18, 27 and 52 on suspicion of attempted murder, the force says.

Det Ch Insp Jamie Henderson says: "We are currently treating this incident as a targeted attack and we do not believe there is any wider risk to the public.

"I do however understand there will be concern within the local community and I would like to reassure people that our inquiries are moving quickly."

There will be an increased police presence, including armed response officers, in the area and into the evening, Det Ch Insp Henderson adds.

Anyone who saw what happened, or who has any information about the incident, is being asked to contact South Yorkshire Police.

Sarah Wakefield
BBC Radio Leeds News

People in West Yorkshire who are considering getting a dog are being asked to think about adopting an older pet.

Image source, Dogs Trust

Although demand has been high for puppies during the coronavirus lockdown, Dogs Trust Leeds says older dogs deserve to be considered as well.

Kevin Johnson, a canine carer for the re-homing centre, said: "Since lockdown began, the demand for young dogs has skyrocketed, but the downside is the older, maturer dogs are forgotten about.

With older dogs, they're used to the real world and human habits and tend to very easily transition into a new home and can be a lot easier than puppies."

Around 24% of the dogs at Dogs Trust Leeds are over eight years old and are waiting for a new family, the charity says.