County Council elections in Ceredigion - Summary of Results

The political picture in Ceredigion is relatively unchanged following the local elections. Plaid Cymru won 46% of the vote and have a net gain so far of one seat, having gained four and lost three. The main Independent group lost a net two seats and the Lib Dems also gained one. Full results here.

The Llandyfriog seat is still to be decided following the untimely death of one of the candidates.

The new gains for Plaid were:

• Endaf Edwards in Aberystwyth Rheidol from Independent Aled Davies
• Gethin Davies in Aberporth from the Independent/UKIP councillor Gethin James
• Clive Davies in Penparc, near Cardigan, who won the seat of the recently retired Independent Haydn Lewis.
• Maldwyn Lewis in Troedyraur, who was unopposed. He had been an Independent councillor in the previous administration but stood for Plaid Cymru in this election.

Losses for Plaid were:

• Peter Evans in Llandysul to former council leader Keith Evans
• John Lumley in Ciliau Aeron to an Independent
• The second seat in Penparcau, where new Plaid candidate Dylan Lewis only fell short by four votes against the Lib Dems. Dylan had been selected to stand by Plaid several months ago instead of the sitting Plaid councillor Lorrae Jones-Southgate. She then left the party to join the Independent group on the Council and then came fourth in this election. Penparcau’s other seat was held by Plaid’s Steve Davies who finished top of the poll for the second election running. 

One of the results most celebrated on Twitter feeds across Wales was the win by Plaid's Gethin Davies in Aberporth who knocked out UKIP’s Gethin James. James actually had ‘Independent’ against his name on the ballot paper but is strongly identified with UKIP, having stood for them last year in the Welsh Assembly elections and been working as a research assistant for UKIP Assembly Member Nathan Gill since then. Previously a Ceredigion Cabinet Member, he had been sacked from that post by Council Leader Ellen ap Gwynn when he announced that he'd joined UKIP. There are now no UKIP councillors in Wales.

The Ceredigion councillor numbers now look like this:

Plaid Cymru 19 (+1)

Independents 11 (-2)

Lib Dems 8 (+1)

Llais Annibynnol 2 (-)

Labour 1 (-)

The figures are provisional pending the outcome of the delayed election in the currently Plaid-held Llandyfriog seat.

With no group having an overall majority of the 42 council seats, the Council’s new administration will be decided in negotiation between the different groups in the next few days.