2017 Welsh Liberal Democrats leadership election

Last updated

2017 Welsh Liberal Democrats leadership election
Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg
  2016 25 September – 28 October 2017Next 
 
Jane Dodds at Brighton 2018.jpg
Elizabeth Evans (crop) 2017.png
Candidate Jane Dodds Elizabeth Evans
First round587519
Percentage56.5%43.5%

Leader before election

Kirsty Williams

Elected Leader

Jane Dodds

The Welsh Liberal Democrats leadership election took place during the autumn of 2017 and was won by Jane Dodds, who defeated Ceredigion Councillor Elizabeth Evans in a closely fought contest. [1] [2]

Contents

Following the 2017 general election the party's leader, and only MP, Mark Williams lost his Ceredigion seat by 104 votes. Because of this he stood down as leader later that day.[ citation needed ]

His predecessor as leader, Kirsty Williams, took over as interim leader, but announced she wouldn't be a candidate in the forthcoming leadership election. [3]

Jane Dodds was declared the winner with 56.5% of the vote on 3 November 2017. [4]

Candidates

CandidateBornElectoral HistoryEndorsements
Jane Dodds 23 September 1963
(age 54)
Wrexham
Contested Montgomeryshire in the 2015 and 2017 general elections and Montgomeryshire in the 2016 National Assembly for Wales election.

Richmond upon Thames Councillor for North Richmond 2006 [5] to 2010. [6]

Jenny Randerson, Baroness Randerson,
Joan Walmsley, Baroness Walmsley,
Martin Thomas, Baron Thomas of Gresford
Elizabeth Evans23 February
Aberaeron
Contested Ceredigion in the 2011 and 2016 National Assembly for Wales Elections.

Ceredigion Councillor for Aberaeron since 2008. [7]

Peter Black, [8]
Mark Williams [9]

Close of ballots was 5PM on 30 October 2017. [2]

Result

CandidateVotes %
Turnout:
35.2%
Jane Dodds587
56.5
Elizabeth Evans519
43.5
Total1,106

[4] [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Welsh Liberal Democrats</span> Welsh state party of the Liberal Democrats

The Welsh Liberal Democrats is a liberal, federalist political party in Wales, part of UK Liberal Democrats. The party is led by Jane Dodds, who has served as an MS for Mid and West Wales since May 2021. The party currently has one elected member in the Senedd and one Welsh seat in the UK House of Commons. It also has several members of the House of Lords. The party had 69 local councillors serving in principal authorities as of the 2022 local authority elections, up 10 from 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caroline Pidgeon, Baroness Pidgeon</span> British politician (born 1972)

Caroline Valerie Pidgeon, Baroness Pidgeon,, is a British politician. She served as the leader of the Liberal Democrats in the London Assembly from 2010 to 2024, and was a member of the London Assembly (AM) from 2008 to 2024. Pidgeon was a councillor on Southwark London Borough Council from 1998 to 2010 and has been a member of the House of Lords since 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liberal Democrats (UK)</span> British political party

The Liberal Democrats are a liberal political party in the United Kingdom, founded in 1988. The current leader of the party is Ed Davey. They are the third-largest party in the United Kingdom, with 72 members of Parliament (MPs) in the House of Commons. They have 78 members of the House of Lords, four members of the Scottish Parliament, one member in the Welsh Senedd, and more than 3,000 local council seats. The party holds a twice-per-year Liberal Democrat Conference, at which party policy is formulated. In contrast to its main opponents' rules, the Liberal Democrats grant all members attending its Conference the right to vote on party policy, under a one member, one vote system. The party also allows its members to vote online for its policies and in the election of a new leader.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council</span> Local authority for the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council, also known as Richmond upon Thames Council, LBRUT or Richmond Council, is the local authority for the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in London. The council has been under Liberal Democrat majority control since 2018. Although the borough is named after Richmond, the council meets at York House in Twickenham, and has its main offices in the adjoining Civic Centre.

Stephen Knight is a Labour politician in the United Kingdom who has previously been a member of the London Assembly for the Liberal Democrats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 Brent London Borough Council election</span> 2014 local election in England

The 2014 Brent London Borough Council election took place on 22 May 2014 to elect members of Brent London Borough Council in London, England. The whole council was up for election and the Labour Party stayed in overall control of the council.

The 2015 Liberal Democrats leadership election was held on 16 July 2015 following the resignation of Nick Clegg as leader on 8 May 2015, after almost eight years as leader of the Liberal Democrats, following the party's poor performance at the 2015 general election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Richmond Park by-election</span> UK parliamentary by-election

On 1 December 2016, a by-election was held in the UK parliamentary constituency of Richmond Park. It was triggered by the resignation of the Conservative Member of Parliament Zac Goldsmith on 25 October 2016 over the Government's proposal for a third runway at the nearby Heathrow Airport. It was won by Sarah Olney of the Liberal Democrats, after a campaign focused on opposition to Brexit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 Welsh local elections</span>

The 2017 Welsh local elections were held on 4 May 2017 to elect members of all 22 local authorities in Wales. This included the Isle of Anglesey, which was previously up for election in 2013 due to having its elections delayed for a year. Community council elections also took place on the same day. These local elections were held as part of the 2017 local elections in the United Kingdom. Apart from Anglesey, the last elections were held in 2012. Normally these elections take place every four years, but the 2017 elections were postponed for a year in order to avoid clashing with the 2016 Welsh Assembly election, which itself had been postponed by a year to avoid clashing with the 2015 general election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United Kingdom local elections</span>

The 2018 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 3 May 2018, with local council elections taking place in all 32 London boroughs, 34 metropolitan boroughs, 67 district and borough councils and 17 unitary authorities. There were also direct elections for the mayoralties of Hackney, Lewisham, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Watford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jane Dodds</span> Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats

Jane Winifred Dodds is a Welsh politician who has served as Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats since 2017. She was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brecon and Radnorshire at the seat's 2019 by-election, but was an MP for only three months before being defeated in the general election later the same year. In May 2021, Dodds was elected to the Senedd on the Mid and West Wales list. She is the only Liberal Democrat MS in the Senedd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 Kingston upon Thames London Borough Council election</span> 2018 local election in England, UK

The 2018 Kingston upon Thames Borough Council election took place on 3 May 2018 to elect members of Kingston upon Thames Council in London, England. This was on the same day as other local elections.

The 2019 Liberal Democrats leadership election was held following the announcement of the resignation of Vince Cable as leader on 24 May 2019, after just under two years as leader of the Liberal Democrats in the United Kingdom. The two candidates to succeed Cable were Ed Davey and Jo Swinson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 Brecon and Radnorshire by-election</span> UK parliamentary by-election

A by-election was held in the UK Parliament constituency of Brecon and Radnorshire on 1 August 2019 after Chris Davies, who had held the seat for the Conservatives since the 2015 general election, was unseated by a recall petition. The by-election was won by Jane Dodds of the Liberal Democrats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 United Kingdom general election in Wales</span> United Kingdom general election held in Wales

The 2019 United Kingdom general election was held on 12 December 2019 to elect all 650 members of the House of Commons, including the 40 Welsh seats.

The 2020 Liberal Democrats leadership election was held in August 2020, after Jo Swinson, the previous leader of the Liberal Democrats, lost her seat in the 2019 general election. It was initially set to be held in July 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic it was delayed by six weeks, having been at first postponed until May 2021.

The 2016 Welsh Liberal Democrats leadership election took place following the resignation of Kirsty Williams following the 2016 elections to the Welsh Assembly where the Welsh Liberal Democrats fell from five seats to one.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liberal Democrat–Green Party alliance</span> Political coalition in the United Kingdom

In the politics of England, a Liberal Democrat–Green Party alliance is an ad-hoc arrangement between candidates and elected representatives from the Liberal Democrats and Green Party to form a joint group on elected bodies or to field joint lists or candidates in elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Kingston upon Thames London Borough Council election</span> 2022 local election in Kingston upon Thames

The 2022 Kingston upon Thames London Borough Council election took place on 5 May 2022 to elect all 48 members of Kingston upon Thames London Borough Council. The elections took place alongside local elections in the other London boroughs and elections to local authorities across the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council election</span> 2022 local election in Richmond upon Thames

The 2022 Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council election took place on 5 May 2022. All 54 members of Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council were elected. The elections took place alongside local elections in the other London boroughs and elections to local authorities across the United Kingdom.

References

  1. David Cornock (17 September 2017). "The leadership contest no-one is talking about". bbc.co.uk. BBC News.
  2. 1 2 "Party Elections". www.welshlibdems.wales.
  3. David Cornock (17 September 2017). "Vince Cable 'optimistic' despite Welsh Lib Dem woes". bbc.co.uk. BBC News.
  4. 1 2 "Jane Dodds is new Welsh Liberal Democrat leader". BBC News. 3 November 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
  5. "LONDON BOROUGH OF RICHMOND UPON THAMES - BOROUGH COUNCIL ELECTION - 4th May 2006" (PDF). London Borough of Richmond upon Thames . Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 July 2018.
  6. "Election results for North Richmond, 6 May 2010". London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. 6 May 2010. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
  7. "Councillors & Committees". Ceredigion County Council. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
  8. "Facebook". Facebook. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
  9. "Facebook". Facebook. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
  10. Adrian Masters (3 November 2017). "Welsh Lib Dem leadership result: Jane Dodds 53.1% Elizabeth Evans 46.9% 35.2% turnout". Twitter.com. Retrieved 4 July 2018.