List of political parties in Wales

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There are a number of political parties registered to the Electoral Commission in Wales. Some of these parties have elected representation in the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; Welsh : Senedd Cymru) and/or in Westminster (UK Parliament) and some have elected representation in one or more of the 22 Welsh local authorities, while others have entirely no elected representation. This Wikipedia page lists all of the above and some relevant Welsh political parties that formerly existed but have since disbanded. The largest political parties typically reside[ clarification needed ] in either the House of Commons or the Senedd, the current largest party in Wales is Welsh Labour, followed closely by the Welsh Conservatives and Plaid Cymru.

House of Commons/Senedd

House of Commons

The Parliament of the United Kingdom is a legislative body in the United Kingdom and creates primary legislation. [1] There are two chambers within the Parliament of the United Kingdom: the House of Commons (the elected chamber) and the House of Lords. This article focuses on the House of Commons. Three parties have elected representatives in that house (MPs): Welsh Labour, Welsh Conservatives and Plaid Cymru. The constituencies are due to change for the 2024 general election. [2]

Senedd

The Senedd was formed under the Government of Wales Act 1998, by the Labour government, following a referendum in 1997. It was given greater powers under the 2011 Welsh devolution referendum. In 2021, four parties have elected representatives in the Senedd: Welsh Labour, Welsh Conservatives, Plaid Cymru and Welsh Liberal Democrats.

House of Commons/Senedd parties

PartyTranslationLeaderPolitical positionIdeology MSs MPs Local government Membership [lower-alpha 1]
Welsh Labour [lower-alpha 2] Welsh : Llafur Cymru Vaughan Gething (cropped official portrait).jpg Vaughan Gething Centre-left Social democracy
Democratic socialism
British unionism
30 / 60
22 / 40
523 / 1,254
22,000 [3]
Welsh Conservatives Welsh : Ceidwadwyr Cymreig Andrew RT Davies 2016 (cropped).jpg Andrew RT Davies Centre-right Conservatism
Economic liberalism
British unionism
16 / 60
14 / 40
111 / 1,254
Unknown
Plaid Cymru English: Party of Wales Rhun ap Iorwerth official portrait (cropped).jpg Rhun ap Iorwerth Centre-left to left-wing Welsh nationalism
Welsh independence
Democratic socialism
Social democracy
Environmentalism
Regionalism
Civic nationalism
13 / 60
4 / 40
203 / 1,254
10,100 [4]
Welsh Liberal Democrats Welsh : Democratiaid Rhyddfrydol Cymru Jane-dodds (cropped).jpg Jane Dodds Centre to centre-left Liberalism
Social liberalism
British unionism
Pro-Europeanism
1 / 60
0 / 40
69 / 1,254
3,133 [5]

Local government

Several parties in Wales have no national representation, but have elected representation at the local government level.

County councils

PartyTranslationElected members of local governmentPolitical positionIdeology
Wales Green Party [6] Welsh : Plaid Werdd Cymru8 [7] [8] Left-wing Green politics
Progressivism
Pro-Europeanism
Llantwit First Independents Welsh : Annibynwyr Cyntaf Llantwit4 (Vale of Glamorgan Council)N/A Localism
Uplands Party [9] Welsh : Plaid Uplands4 (Swansea Council)N/A Localism
Newport Independents Party Welsh : Plaid Annibynwyr Casnewydd3 (Newport City Council)N/A Localism
Propel 1 (Cardiff Council)None [10] Welsh nationalism
Welsh independence
Localism
Sovereignism
Anti-nuclearism
Gwlad English: Country1 (Ceredigion County Council) Centre-right [11] Welsh nationalism
Welsh independence

Community and town councils

PartyTranslationElected members of local governmentPolitical positionIdeology
Gwlad English: Country2 Centre-right [12] Welsh nationalism
Welsh independence

Council control

CouncilControlWebTotalLABPCCONLDGPOtherVacant
Blaenau Gwent LABmaj URL 332211 [w 1]
Bridgend LABmaj URL 51262122 [w 2]
Caerphilly LABmaj URL 6945186 [w 3]
Cardiff LABmaj URL 7955211101 [w 4]
Carmarthenshire PCmaj URL 75233814 [w 5]
Ceredigion PCmaj URL 3821710 [w 6]
Conwy NOCIND+PC+LAB URL 5598 [w 7] 104122 [w 8]
Denbighshire NOCLAB+PC URL 4819861212 [w 9]
Flintshire NOCLAB min (LD support) URL 673124 [w 10] 30 [w 11]
Gwynedd PCmaj URL 69146121 [w 12]
Isle of Anglesey PCmaj URL 35321110 [w 13]
Merthyr Tydfil NOCIND+LAB URL 3015 [w 14] 15 [w 15]
Monmouthshire NOCLAB min URL 46221815 [w 16]
Neath Port Talbot NOCIND+PC URL 5825112119 [w 17]
Newport LABmaj URL 51357117 [w 18]
Pembrokeshire INDmaj URL 607611135 [w 19]
Powys NOCLD+LAB URL 689 [w 20] 31424 [w 21] 117 [w 22]
Rhondda Cynon Taf LABmaj URL 75471738 [w 23]
Swansea LABmaj URL 7545711111 [w 24]
Torfaen LABmaj URL 403010 [w 25]
Vale of Glamorgan NOCLAB+IND URL 54258138 [w 26]
Wrexham NOCIND+CON URL 561499123 [w 27]
Total1,2545232031116983691

Parties with no elected representation

Notable registered parties

PartyTranslationPolitical positionIdeology
Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party Welsh : Plaid Diddymu Cynulliad Cymru Single-issue Welsh Parliament abolition
Anti-devolution
No More Lockdowns Welsh : Dim Mwy O Gloi LawrN/A Anti-lockdown
Reform UK Welsh : Diwygio DU Right-wing Right-wing populism
Euroscepticism
Social Democratic Party Syncretic Social democracy
Social conservatism
Communitarianism
Euroscepticism
Socialist Party Wales [13] Welsh : Plaid Sosialaidd Cymru [13] Far-left [14] Revolutionary socialism
Trotskyism
Marxism
The Cynon Valley Party Welsh : Parti Cwm CynonN/A Localism
Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) Left-wing [15] [16] to far-left [17] Socialism
Trade unionism
UK Independence Party Welsh : Plaid Annibyniaeth y DU Right-wing to far-right Euroscepticism
Right-wing populism
National conservatism
Economic liberalism
British nationalism
Welsh Christian Party Welsh : Plaid Gristnogol Cymru Right-wing [18] Christian right
Social conservatism
British unionism
Euroscepticism
Communist Party of Britain Welsh : Plaid Gomiwnyddol Prydain Far-left [19] Communism
Marxism–Leninism
Women's Equality Party Welsh : Plaid Cydraddoldeb Merched Feminism
Pro-Europeanism

Defunct parties

See also

Notes

  1. 11 Independents
  2. 21Independents
  3. 6 Independents
  4. 1 Propel
  5. 14 Independents
  6. 9 Independents and 1 Gwlad
  7. 1 ex-Independent
  8. 23 Independents including 1 ex-Plaid, 2 ex-Conservative
  9. 12 Independents
  10. Includes 1 Independent who sits with the Lib Dems Group
  11. 30 Independent Alliance including Plaid Cymru and Independents
  12. 21 independents, 6 Llais Gwynedd
  13. 10 Independents
  14. 1 ex-Independent
  15. 15 Independents
  16. 5 Independents
  17. 19 Independents leading administration
  18. 7 Independents, 4 Non aligned & 3 Newport Independents
  19. 13 Independents, 22 non-aligned
  20. 1 ex-Conservative
  21. 1 ex-Conservative
  22. 30 Independents
  23. 7 Independents including 1 ex-Lib Dem, 1 Cynon Valley Party
  24. 11 Independents, 4 non-aligned Uplands Party
  25. 10 Independents
  26. 8 dependents, 4 Llantwit Independents and 1 non-aligned in administration with Labour, 4 non-aligned.
  27. 23 Independents, 21 ruling Independent Group & 2 non-aligned
  1. Political parties are under no legal obligation to publish membership statistics and there is no uniformly recognised definition of membership.
  2. Some candidates stand as Labour and Co-operative joint candidates due to an electoral alliance with the Co-operative Party.

Related Research Articles

Plaid Cymru is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Wales East (Senedd electoral region)</span> Electoral region of the Senedd

South Wales East is an electoral region of the Senedd, consisting of eight constituencies. The region elects 12 members, eight directly elected constituency members and four additional members. The electoral region was first used in 1999, when the National Assembly for Wales was created.

There are four types of elections in Wales: elections to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, elections to the devolved Senedd, 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aberavon (Senedd constituency)</span> Constituency of the Senedd

Aberavon is a constituency of the Senedd. It elects one Member of the Senedd by the first past the post method of election. Also, however, it is one of seven constituencies in the South Wales West electoral region, which elects four additional members, in addition to seven constituency members, to produce a degree of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Welsh independence</span> Welsh political philosophy

Welsh independence is the political movement advocating for Wales to become a sovereign state, independent from the United Kingdom.

Politics of Cardiff refers to the political representation of the city of Cardiff, capital of Wales. Cardiff is represented politically at a local, Wales and United Kingdom level and previously at the European level.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2007 National Assembly for Wales election</span>

The 2007 National Assembly for Wales election was held on Thursday 3 May 2007 to elect members to the National Assembly for Wales. It was the third general election. On the same day local elections in England and Scotland, as well as the Scottish Parliament election took place. This election was preceded by the previous Assembly election in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Propel (political party)</span> Welsh political party

Propel is a sovereignist and Welsh nationalist political party in Wales which advocates Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. The party was formed in early 2020 by its current leader Neil McEvoy. Propel currently has one county councillor in Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 National Assembly for Wales election</span>

The 2016 National Assembly for Wales election was held on Thursday 5 May 2016, to elect members (AMs) of the National Assembly for Wales, now known as the Senedd. It was the fifth election for the National Assembly, the third election taken under the rules of the Government of Wales Act 2006 and the first since the Wales Act 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unionism in Wales</span> Overview of unionism in Wales

Unionism in Wales is the political view that supports a political union between Wales and the other countries of the United Kingdom. As well as the current state of the UK, unionism may also include support for Federalism in the United Kingdom and a United Kingdom Confederation.

The Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party, or in Wales, simply Abolish, is a registered single issue political party in Wales. It campaigns for the abolition of the Senedd, formerly known as the "National Assembly for Wales", the devolved legislature of Wales. Abolish advocates that devolved powers be returned to the Secretary of State for Wales within the UK Central Government and the Parliament of the United Kingdom at Westminster.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neil McEvoy</span> Welsh politician (born 1970)

Neil John McEvoy is a Welsh nationalist politician, serving as leader of Propel since 2020, and as a Cardiff Councillor for the Fairwater ward since 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Members of the 5th National Assembly for Wales</span>

This is a list of Assembly Memberselected to the fifth National Assembly for Wales at the 2016 election. In May 2020, the representatives were renamed to Members of the Seneddin the fifth Senedd, they would be known as the fifth Senedd for the remainder of their term. From the 2021 election members would be elected under this new title of Senedd. There are a total of 60 members elected, 40 were elected from first past the post constituencies with a further 20 members being returned from five regions, each electing four AMs through mixed member proportional representation. In between elections, members of the legislature may not necessarily be of the same party or the same candidate elected in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021 Senedd election</span> General election held in Wales on 6 May 2021

The 2021 Senedd election took place on Thursday 6 May 2021 to elect 60 members to the Senedd. It was the sixth devolved general election since the Senedd was established in 1999. The election was held alongside the Scottish Parliament election, English local elections, London Assembly and mayoral election and the Hartlepool by-election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gwlad</span> Nationalist political party in Wales

Gwlad is a centre-right Welsh nationalist and pro-independence political party. Its current leader is Gwyn Wigley Evans.

The next Senedd election is due to be held in or before May 2026 to elect 60 members to the Senedd. It will be the seventh devolved general election since the Senedd was established in 1999. It will also be the second election since the Senedd changed its name in May 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Welsh local elections</span>

The 2022 Welsh local elections took place on 5 May 2022 to elect members of all twenty-two local authorities in Wales. They were held alongside other local elections in the United Kingdom. The previous elections were held in 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Cardiff Council election</span> Local election in Wales

The 2022 Cardiff Council election took place on 5 May 2022 to elect 79 members to Cardiff Council. On the same day, elections were held to the other 21 local authorities and to community councils in Wales as part of the 2022 Welsh local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Wrexham County Borough Council election</span> Election to Wrexham County Borough Council

The 2022 Wrexham County Borough Council election took place on 5 May 2022 to elect 56 members to Wrexham County Borough Council, the principal council of Wrexham County Borough, Wales. On the same day, elections were held to the other 21 local authorities, and community councils in Wales as part of the 2022 Welsh local elections. The previous Wrexham County Borough all-council election took place in May 2017 and future elections will take place every five years, with the next scheduled for 2027.

References

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  2. "Major changes to cut number of Welsh MPs published". BBC News. 8 September 2021.
  3. Williams, Darren (5 June 2021). "WEC Meeting 5 June 2021". Darren Williams.
  4. "Plaid Cymru see 25% membership boost following Adam Price's leadership victory". Nation.Cymru . Archived from the original on 13 October 2018. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
  5. "Jane Dodds is new Welsh Liberal Democrat leader". BBC News. 3 November 2017.
  6. "View registration - The Electoral Commission". search.electoralcommission.org.uk. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  7. "Wales Local Elections 2022". BBC News. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
  8. Mosalski, Ruth; Youle, Richard; O'Neill, Ryan (6 May 2022). "The Green Party gets its first councillors in Cardiff as it grows its representatives across Wales". WalesOnline. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
  9. "View registration - The Electoral Commission". search.electoralcommission.org.uk.
  10. "Independent AM Neil McEvoy to launch new Welsh National Party". ITV News. 10 February 2020. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  11. "Gwlad Gwlad standing in four seats where Plaid Cymru have withdrawn 'to offer people a pro-independence vote'". Nation.Cymru. 15 November 2019. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  12. "Gwlad Gwlad standing in four seats where Plaid Cymru have withdrawn 'to offer people a pro-independence vote'". Nation.Cymru. 15 November 2019. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  13. 1 2 "Socialist Party Wales – Socialism In Wales" . Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  14. WalesOnline (11 August 2003). "New Welsh Socialist dawn?". WalesOnline. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  15. Waugh, Paul (20 September 2019). "Harriet Harman Urged To Pull Out Of Commons Speaker Race By Local Labour Party". Huffpost. Retrieved 7 April 2020. The motion by Nick Wrack, who was readmitted to Labour after standing against Harman for the left-wing TUSC party four years ago, cites the precedent of Tories warning they would stand a candidate against John Bercow if he stayed on.
  16. Prest, Victoria (18 April 2015). "Trade Union and Socialist Party (TUSC) to contest eight seats in York council elections". The Press . Retrieved 7 April 2020. The left-wing party Trade Union and Socialist Party (TUSC) is fielding eight would-be councillors for seats on City of York Council, as well as a parliamentary candidate in York Central.
  17. Cohen, Tamara (2 June 2017). "Can far-left fringe parties make a difference to Labour's election push?". Sky News. Retrieved 7 April 2020. Britain's largest far-left party, the Trade Union Socialist Coalition (TUSC), founded by the late Bob Crow, is standing no candidates this year.
  18. "Former Llan'dod mayor stands for Christian Party in General Election". County Times. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  19. Barberis, Peter; McHugh, John; Tyldesley, Mike (2000). "Far Left". Encyclopedia of British and Irish Political Organizations: Parties, Groups and Movements of the 20th Century. London: A&C Black. p. 145. ISBN   0826458149.
  20. People First - Gwerin Gyntaf (De-registered 03/11/16), The Electoral Commission. Retrieved 2018-09-23.