Nicola Sturgeon enjoyed success as a leader in Tayside and Fife during her eight years in power – but was criticised for falling short on some promises.
Politically, she banked solid electoral support from the moment she took up the position as first minister in 2014.
But as she steps down, what legacy is Ms Sturgeon leaving communities across the region?
Election success
There is no doubt she is popular – in almost all elections at all levels, Ms Sturgeon has steered her party to victory.
Almost all the MPs and constituency MSPs in the area represent the SNP and in the last council election her party won the most seats in all four local authority areas.
The challenge for whoever replaces her as first minister will be to keep that momentum up for the SNP.
Drug deaths crisis
Scotland has the unwanted title of having the highest drugs death rate in Europe.
And during Ms Sturgeon’s leadership, Dundee was at the forefront.
During the 2021 Holyrood election she even admitted she had taken her “eye off the ball”.
In 2020, Dundee MSP Joe Fitzpatrick quit as public health minister over the spiralling crisis, and Ms Sturgeon replaced him with a dedicated drugs policy minister.
New initiatives to tackle problem drug use have been set up and drug death numbers in the city have improved slightly in recent years.
But with 1,300 drug deaths nationally in the past year, it is difficult to see how her legacy will be anything other than a failure in this area.
Delays to dualling the A9
When the SNP came to power in 2007, the party promised to dual the A9 between Perth and Inverness by 2025.
In summer 2021, motorists were finally able to enjoy a new dualled stretch between Luncarty and Birnam.
But that is where the successes on this project end.
Only two of the 11 sections have been completed and in 2022 alone 13 people died on this road.
Her own backbenchers and campaigners are furious at the lack of progress.
Days before Ms Sturgeon said she’s qutting, her transport minister had to admit the 2025 target date was no longer achievable.
A leader through the coronavirus pandemic
Perhaps history will remember Ms Sturgeon most for being the first minister during the coronavirus pandemic.
Her presence at her daily televised coronavirus briefings became a staple part of lockdown life for many.
And because of this she was seen as a steadying force and enjoyed better popularity ratings than other politicians at the time.
She was also seen to take decisive action over rule-breaking by sacking her chief medical officer Catherine Calderwood.
But that will be of little comfort to those who lost a loved one during the pandemic.
She has come under heavy criticism for care home deaths and locals from Tayside and Fife continue to push her on the Covid-19 inquiry and on how to tackle Long Covid.
NHS performance
Until recently, NHS Tayside was one of the few health boards meeting the target to see 95% of patients arriving at A&E within four hours.
And 92% of referrals to the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) are seen within 18 weeks in the health board.
NHS Fife is not seeing the same thing – only 78% of patients are seen within the A&E waiting targets.
Waiting times in other areas across Tayside and Fife are slipping, particularly for key diagnostic tests.
Bed blocking, or delayed discharge, has continued to grow under her watch.
Ms Sturgeon was accused of being “in denial” about the collapse of NHS Tayside’s breast cancer service after our documentary revealed the crisis happening in the service.
Bringing jobs to the region
Ms Sturgeon tried to bring more jobs out of the central belt and into places like Tayside and Fife.
In 2020, it was announced the Scottish Government was moving Social Security Scotland’s headquarters to Dundee’s Waterfront.
This has brought hundreds of civil service jobs to the city, something Dundee council leader John Alexander hailed as “incredible news”.
Infrastructure changes
The Queensferry Crossing started under Alex Salmond, but it opened in 2017 on Ms Sturgeon’s watch.
It is now a familiar landmark of the Forth skyline and at 1.6 miles is the longest bridge of its type in the whole world, serving commuters travelling between Fife and Edinburgh.
City deals
In 2020 the £700 million Tay Cities Deal was signed, funding 26 different projects across Dundee, Perth, Angus and Fife.
And while this was a joint venture with the UK Government, the Scottish Government funded £300m of it.
Projects across the region now receive investment and funding, including a biomedical cluster in Dundee, an international “barley hub” and an advanced plant growth centre in Invergowrie, the Eden Campus in Fife and the renovation of Perth City Hall.
Education and bullying
Ms Sturgeon asked the public to judge her on her record with education.
However, she has come under scathing attack for not closing the attainment gap and for the exams fiasco on the back of the coronavirus pandemic.
And in recent months horrific incidents of bullying in schools in Fife have been brought right to her front door.
She has vehemently condemned the incidents in schools such as Waid Academy and Bell Baxter High School, but this problem is one which will be left for the next first minister to confront.
Conversation