Elections_in_Wales

Elections in Wales

Elections in Wales

Overview of the procedure of elections in Wales


There are four types of elections in Wales: elections to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, elections to the devolved Senedd (Welsh Parliament; Welsh: Senedd Cymru), local elections to community councils and the 22 principal areas, and the Police and Crime Commissioner elections. In addition there are by-elections for each aforementioned election. Elections are held on Election Day, which is conventionally a Thursday. Since the passing of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 for UK general elections, all four types of elections are held after fixed periods, though early elections to the UK parliament can occur in certain situations, with Senedd elections being postponed to avoid elections to the UK parliament and Senedd coinciding with each other.

The three electoral systems used for elections in Wales are: first-past-the-post (for UK elections and local elections, though individual local authorities are able to move to STV under recent Welsh legislation), the additional member system (for Senedd elections) and the supplementary vote (for Police and Crime Commissioner elections; although proposals by the UK Government to change PCC elections to FPTP have been made).

Local government elections

The results of the 2017 local elections, showing control party by council (left), and largest party by ward (right).[needs update]

There are elections to 22 unitary authorities across Wales every four years, most recently on 5 May 2022. The electoral system used is first-past-the-post. The largest unitary authorities in Wales are Cardiff, Newport and Swansea councils, which all lie in the southern coastal belt.

Police and crime commissioner elections

Police and crime commissioners were established in England and Wales, replacing the local police authorities, following the Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition agreement of 2010, with the first Police and crime commissioners elected in 2012.

Devolved parliament elections

There have been six elections to the devolved parliament of Wales, based in Cardiff Bay since 1999. These elections are held every five years to elect sixty Members of the Senedd (MSs; formerly Assembly Members, ASs). Voters have two votes: forty MSs are elected by the First Past the Post system in individual constituencies, and a further twenty MSs are elected by a regional top-up system in which voters vote by region. This system overall is called Additional Members System (AMS) and is a hybrid electoral system mixing both a plurality system (FPTP) and a proportional system (the party list system). The regions are: Mid and West Wales, North Wales, South Wales Central, South Wales East and South Wales West, whereas the constituencies are the same used for elections to the UK parliament. Each region elects four MSs, to achieve approximately proportional representation overall, with every individual in Wales being represented by five MSs in total, their local constituency MS and four regional MSs. Between its inception in 1999, it was known as the 'National Assembly for Wales'. Legislation was passed in 2020, for a name change on 6 May 2020 to its current name, 'Senedd Cymru' or the 'Welsh Parliament' (or simply 'Senedd') to fully reflect its constitutional status as a law-making and tax-setting parliament.[1] It is based in Cardiff Bay, initially (as the Assembly) in Tŷ Hywel from 1999 to 2006, until it moved to the Senedd building, which opened on 1 March 2006, where the Assembly and now Senedd has been based since 2006. The elections were held every four years from 1999, but were increased to five years following the Wales Act 2014 for the 2016 election.

The 2021 Senedd election on 6 May 2021, was the first election to the devolved parliament since its name change. The election took place akin to previous elections when it was known as the National Assembly for Wales.

Election reform

The Richard Commission report of 2004 suggested an increase of the number of Members to 80. That number was also suggested, as a minimum, by the 2014 report of the Silk Commission.[2] Similarly, in 2013 and 2016, the Electoral Reform Society published reports making the case for an upsize of the Assembly.[3][4] A 2017 report of an expert commission suggested an increase to between 80 and 90 Members, switching to single transferable vote (STV) and enforcing gender quotas.[2]

A reduction in the number of Welsh MPs has been proposed for the next UK general alection. Under the proposals, the number of MPs would be reduced from 40 to 32 and new constituency boundaries have also been proposed.[5] The boundary plans were published on 19 October 2022 and voters have four weeks to comment. The map of the new constituency boundaries would also be used as Senedd regions for the next Senedd election.[6]

The Special Committee was set up on 6 October 2021.[7] In May 2022, a joint position statement was published by First Minister Mark Drakeford and Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price,[8] calling for a 96-Member Senedd, all elected through closed party list proportional representation (using the D'Hondt method) with mandatory "zipping" of male and female candidates in the list to ensure that for every party, half of the Members will be women.[9]

The final report of the Special Committee was published on 30 May 2022 and recommended the system agreed to by the Labour and Plaid Cymru leaders.[10]

Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill

In September 2023, the Welsh Government published its plans for electoral reform as part of the proposed Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill. The number of Senedd constituencies is set to fall to 16, with each constituency electing six MSs from a closed list under the D'Hondt method. Under the proposals, all candidates must live in Wales, and elections would take place every four years, rather than five.[11]

as the Senedd

Elections to the institution prior to 2020, with the last being in 2016, were done under the previous name the 'National Assembly for Wales' (see below). Following legislation in 2020, any subsequent elections, from the 2021 Senedd election will be under its new name.

2026

The next Senedd election is expected to be held on Thursday 7 May 2026, under the provisions of the Wales Act 2014 where Senedd terms are five-year terms. This date can be postponed under circumstances including public health or safety emergencies, or an early UK parliamentary election (itself expected in 2024, but can be held prior).

2021

It was the sixth general election since the establishment of the institution in 1999. It was held along with the other 2021 United Kingdom local elections and was the first election where 16 and 17-year-olds were allowed to vote in Wales, which is the largest extension of the franchise in Wales since 1969. Both changes were a result of the Senedd and Elections (Wales) Bill 2019.[12]


Overall turnout: 46.5%

as the National Assembly for Wales (1999–2020)

Elections to the then 'National Assembly for Wales' (or Welsh Assembly') occurred from its first election in 1999 up until the 2016 election (with any subsequent elections being as the 'Senedd'). This follows the 1997 devolution referendum where Welsh voters narrowly approved the formation of the devolved institution. The institution is now known as the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; Welsh: Senedd Cymru) (see above).

2016


Overall turnout: 45.3%

2011


Overall turnout: 42.2%

2007


Overall turnout: 43.7%

2003


Overall turnout: 38.2%

1999

A map showing the constituency winners (left) and additional members by electoral region (right) of the election by their party colours.

Overall turnout: 46%

Past elections and referendums

UK parliament elections

Map of the 2019 election results.
Map of the 2017 election results.

Wales has been eligible to send MPs to Westminster since the Laws in Wales Act 1535. Between then and 1885, most constituencies were categorised as county or borough constituencies; each sent one MP to Westminster. As the Industrial Revolution took hold there were many calls for reform (particularly in towns such as Merthyr Tydfil). Parliament eventually[when?] allowed the new towns to vote, and this introduced the first Labour MPs. The first leader of the Labour Party in Parliament, Keir Hardie, was one of the two MPs for Merthyr Tydfil. The following table shows the composition of Wales' Westminster MPs since 1885.

More information Year, Labour ...

Detailed breakdowns

2019

More information Party, Seats ...
  1. Not including Brecon and Radnorshire and Aberconwy, which the Conservative Party won in 2017 but did not control when parliament was dissolved.
  2. Not including Brecon and Radnorshire, which the Liberal Democrats won in a 2019 by-election.
  3. Not including Aberconwy, previously controlled by the independent Guto Bebb who lost the Conservative Party whip in 2019.
  4. Party entered candidates in the 2017 general election but not in any Welsh seats.
  5. Party has entered candidates in past general elections but not the 2017 general election.
More information Popular vote ...
More information Parliament seats ...

2017

More information Party, Seats ...
More information Popular vote ...
More information Parliament seats ...

2015

More information Party, Seats ...
More information Popular vote ...
More information Parliament seats ...

2010

More information Party, Seats ...
More information Popular vote ...
More information Parliament seats ...

2005

More information Party, Candidates ...

2001

More information Party, Candidates ...

1997

More information Party, Seats ...

1992

More information Party, Seats ...

1987

More information Party, Seats ...

1983

More information Party, Seats ...

European Parliament

Wales was a constituency in European Parliament elections. Following the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union on 31 January 2020, Wales no longer elects representatives to the European Parliament.

2019

[16]

More information List, Candidates ...

2019 opinion polls

More information Date(s), Polling organisation/client ...

2014

More information European Election 2014: Wales, List ...

2009

More information List, Candidates ...

2004

More information European Election 2004: Wales, List ...

1999

More information European Election 1999: Wales, List ...

1994

More information Party, Seats ...

1989

More information Party, Seats ...

1984

More information Party, Seats ...

1979

More information Party, Seats ...

See also


References

  1. "History of devolution". senedd.wales. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
  2. McAllister, Laura; Wyn Jones, Richard; Larner, Jac (2022). "Improving democracy in Wales". Cardiff University. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  3. Electoral Reform Society Cymru, Size Matters: Making the National Assembly More Effective (2013).
  4. Wales Governance Centre at Cardiff University; Electoral Reform Society Cymru (November 2016). "Reshaping the Senedd. How to elect a more effective Assembly" (PDF). Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  5. Hayward, Will (19 October 2022). "New plans to cut the number of Welsh MPs and create new constituencies". WalesOnline. Retrieved 22 October 2022.
  6. Masters, Adrian (19 October 2022). "Number of Welsh MPs to be cut from 40 to 32 under new proposals". ITV News. Retrieved 22 October 2022.
  7. "Press release: A way forward for Senedd reform". Government of Wales. 10 May 2022. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  8. "Reforming our Senedd: A stronger voice for the people of Wales" (PDF). Government of Wales. 30 May 2022. Retrieved 14 June 2022.
  9. "16 and 17 year olds get right to vote - a historic day for democracy in Wales". National Assembly for Wales. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  10. "Results of the 2019 General Election in Wales". BBC News. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  11. "General election results 1 May 1997". 9 May 1997. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  12. "GENERAL ELECTION RESULTS, 9 APRIL 1992" (PDF). 1993. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  13. "European election 2019: Brexit Party tops poll in Wales". BBC News. 27 May 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
  14. "European Election 2019: UK results in maps and charts". BBC News. 27 May 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
  15. Parry-Jones, Bryn (24 April 2014). "Statement of Persons Nominated". Pembrokeshire County Council. Archived from the original on 11 January 2016. Retrieved 3 May 2014.
  16. "Results of Ballot". conservatives.com. Archived from the original on 10 June 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
  17. "European Elections 2014". Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
  18. "The Wales Green Party has announced today that their Leader, Pippa Bartolotti, is their candidate for the upcoming European Elections to be held next May". Wales.greenparty.org.uk. 22 November 2013. Archived from the original on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  19. "Green Party | Elections". Archived from the original on 8 February 2014. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  20. "Socialists to Stand in Euro-elections | The Socialist Party of Great Britain". worldsocialism.org. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
  21. "Electoral Office of Wales". Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  22. "European Election 2009: Wales". BBC News. 8 June 2009. Archived from the original on 8 June 2009. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  23. "2004 Election candidates". UK Office of the European Parliament. Archived from the original on 4 October 2009. Retrieved 4 June 2009.
  24. "walescand". 3 June 2004. Archived from the original on 18 February 2005. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  25. "1999 Election candidates". UK Office of the European Parliament. Archived from the original on 28 August 2009. Retrieved 4 June 2009.

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