Rheidol ward by-election candidates declared

Candidates have been declared for a Town Council by-election in Aberystwyth's Rheidol ward.

Plaid Cymru's candidate is Samantha Mackenzie-Grieve, the well-known co-owner of MG's cafe in Chalybeate Street. The full list of candidates is:

Sam Mackenzie-Grieve (Plaid)

Tim Foster (Greens)

Wendy Morris-Twiddy (Lib Dem)

Martin Shewring (Independent)

The election has been called after Martin Shewring, a sitting town councillor, resigned from both the Lib Dems and the Council following an internal argument within his party. He's been strongly criticised for wasting council money (up to £1600 to hold the election) in resigning only ten months before the next full round of local elections in May 2012. 

Most people who leave their parties stay on under their new label until the next election. On the other hand, those councillors, AMs and MPs who've done exactly that are habitually told they should have put their new allegiance to their electorate. So it could be argued that he's acted with integrity.

Rheidol ward was a safe Lib Dem ward for many years until Aled Davies caused the biggest shock for some time in Aberystwyth politics by winning a County Council by-election there for Plaid Cymru in June 2008.

The election will be held on August 4th.