This has been our most successful week of by-elections for quite some time. There were only 3 contests this week – and 2 of them resulted in Liberal Democrat gains! Quite spectacular gains too. So let’s celebrate some cracking results that will hopefully be just the start of a very successful month for us!
First of all congratulations to Cllr Susan Grounds and the team on Neath Port Talbot Council who gained Ystalyfera and Cwmllynfell ward from Plaid Cymru. Not only did we not stand in this seat in the previous election in 2022 – this is our first principal council by-election gain in Wales since 2019.
From a standing start we picked up 34% of the vote and jumped ahead of both Plaid and Labour whose votes collapsed by 26.5% and 30% respectively.
Neath Port Talbot Council, Ystalyfera and Cwmllynfell
Liberal Democrats (Susan Grounds): 383 (34%, new)
Plaid Cymru: 340 (30.2%, -26.5%)
Reform: 150 (13.3%, new)
Labour: 143 (12.7%, -30.6%)
Independent: 98 (8.7%, new)
Conservative: 12 (1%, new)
We also gained Park ward on City of Lincoln Council from Labour. Cllr Sarah Uldall increased the Lib Dem vote by 28.5% and beat Labour by a solid margin of 84 votes. We finished over 300 votes behind last time. Congratulations to Sarah and the team in Lincoln on a superb gain.
Lincoln City Council, Park
Liberal Democrats (Sarah Uldall): 366 (35.7%, +28.5%)
Labour: 280 (27.3%, -36.1%)
Reform: 180 (17.5%, +17.5%)
Conservative: 87 (8.5%, -9%)
Green Party: 87 (8.5%, -1.8%)
TUSC: 25 (2.4%, new)
There was one other by-election this week. Sutton South East ward was up for election in St Helens MBC. It was a Lib Dem defence but sadly the seat was gained by ReformUK. Thank you to David Smith for standing for us and sorry you didn’t get the result you wanted this time. But we’re sure you’ll be back.
St Helens MBC, Sutton South East
Reform: 447 (44.5%, new)
Labour: 364 (36.3%, +0.7%)
Liberal Democrats (David Smith): 147 (14.6%, -34.7%)
Conservative: 46 (4.6%, -10.5%)
A full summary of these results, and all other principal council by-elections, can be found on the ALDC by-elections page here.
* Charles Quinn is Campaigns Organiser for ALDC and a local councillor in Hull.
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9 Comments
Was not the movement to Reform detected during any canvassing in the campaign? Our vote fell off a cliff.
I believe the former councillor had an enormous personal vote built up over generations. It does not seem to have transfered.
Personal votes don’t transfer. That’s why they’re called “personal”.
“Conservative: 12 (1%, new)“….. ooopsy! 😀
12 Tory votes in Ystalyfera and Cwmllynfell! Good job the signatures required on the nomination form are now only 2. They only had 2 spares over the 10 previously required. Though you don’t HAVE to vote for the candidate whose forms you signed.
It’s twelve votes more than they got before and easily their best swing of the week.
The Reform win.Yes, personal votes cannot be guarenteed to stay with the party.The problems of the area are the ones that gain votes if dealt with. That,in all areas, is what campaigning should concentrate on.
Very pleasing to see us making progress in south Wales and in the East Midlands. One thing that I heard at the Spring Conference was that if we won the by-election in Lincoln, we would become the official opposition to Labour on the City Council – so an extra round of congratulations to the Lincoln team is in order!
Anne Winstanley: we have done away with the need for 10 signatures on nomination forms in local elections in Wales. A candidate can now self-nominate if they meet the criteria to stand