1898 Carmarthenshire County Council election
Welsh local election
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The fourth election to the Carmarthenshire County Council was held in March 1898.[1] It was preceded by the 1895 election and followed by the 1901 election.
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Overview of the result
The Liberal Party once again retained a strong majority.
Candidates
42 candidates were returned unopposed, with only nine seats being contested, and several of these were between rival Liberal candidates. This was the highest number of uncontested seats since the council was created. Fourteen of those elected at the first election, and who had served continuously since then, sought re-election
Of the retiring aldermen, only Gwilym Evans, former chairman of the council, sought election. He had been defeated for a Llanelli ward in 1892 but was now returned unopposed for a different ward.
Outcome
Although the number of contested elections was small, a number of wards were keenly contested.
There were notable Liberal victories at Caio, where Sir James Hills-Johnes was defeated, and at Pembrey, where W.J. Buckley lost to the Liberal candidate David Evans. Buckley had been a member since 1889 and was parliamentary candidate for West Carmarthenshire.
The Conservatives, in turn, gained ground by winning a number of seats including St Clears and Llanboidy. In Llanelli, John Allen Williams, editor of the Llanelly Guardian, was returned unopposed as a Liberal Unionist.
Seven of the aldermanic seats were occupied by Liberals with the newly elected aldermen including Sir James Hills-Johnes and John Williams, both of whom had been defeated at the polls. Two Conservatives were elected as aldermen, a net gan of one on the aldermanic bench.
Ward results
Abergwili
Bettws
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | William Nathaniel Jones* | Unopposed | |||
| Liberal hold | Swing | ||||
Caio
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | T. Francis Jones | 217 | |||
| Conservative | Sir James Hills-Johnes* | 201 | |||
| Majority | 16 | N/A | |||
| Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | ||||
Carmarthen Eastern Ward (Lower Division)
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | T.E. Brigstocke | Unopposed | |||
| Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | ||||
Carmarthen Eastern Ward (Upper Division)
Carmarthen Western Ward (Lower Division)
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | James John | Unopposed | |||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Carmarthen Western Ward (Upper Division)
Cenarth
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | David Davies | 258 | |||
| Liberal | D.D. Walters | 163 | |||
| Majority | 95 | ||||
| Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | ||||
Cilycwm
Conwil
Kidwelly
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Alfred Stephens | Unopposed | |||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Laugharne
Llanarthney
Llanboidy
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | David Thomas | 298 | |||
| Liberal | Thomas Evans* | 248 | |||
| Majority | 50 | ||||
| Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | ||||
Llandebie
Llandilo Rural
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | William Jones* | Unopposed | |||
| Independent hold | Swing | ||||
Llandilo Urban
Llandovery
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Walter Powell Jeffreys* | Unopposed | |||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Llanedy
Llanegwad
Llanelly Division.1
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Unionist | J. Allen Williams | unopposed | |||
| Liberal Unionist gain from Conservative | Swing | ||||
Llanelly Division 2
Llanelly Division 3
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | William David | unopposed | |||
| Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | ||||
Llanelly Division 4
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Rev Thomas Johns* | Unopposed | N/A | N/A | |
| Liberal hold | |||||
Llanelly Division 5
Llanelly Division 6
Llanelly Division 7
Llanelly Division 8
Llanelly Rural, Berwick
Llanelly Rural, Hengoed
Llanelly Rural, Westfa and Glyn
Llanfihangel Aberbythick
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Viscount Emlyn* | Unopposed | N/A | N/A | |
| Conservative hold | |||||
Llanfihangel-ar-Arth
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Thomas Rees Jones | unopposed | |||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Llangadock
Llangeler
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Colonel W.P. Lewes | unopposed | |||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Llangendeirne
Llangennech
Llangunnor
Llanon
Llansawel
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Sir J.H.W. Drummond, Bart.* | Unopposed | N/A | N/A | |
| Conservative hold | |||||
Llanstephan
Llanybyther
Mothvey
Pembrey North
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | David Evans | 336 | |||
| Liberal Unionist | W.J. Buckley* | 213 | |||
| Majority | 123 | ||||
| Liberal gain from Liberal Unionist | Swing | ||||
Pembrey South
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | W.S. Marsh* | unopposed | |||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Quarter Bach
Rhydcymmerai
St Clears
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Dr R.L. Thomas | 253 | |||
| Liberal | John Williams* | 246 | |||
| Majority | 7 | ||||
| Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | ||||
St Ishmael
Trelech
Whitland
Election of Aldermen
In addition to the 51 councillors the council consisted of 17 county aldermen. Aldermen were elected by the council, and served a six-year term. Following the elections, the following aldermen were appointed by the newly elected council.[2]
The following retiring aldermen were re-elected:
- J.S. Tregoning, Iscoed, Conservative (retiring alderman) 43
- John Lewis, Meirios Hall, Liberal (retiring alderman) 42
- D.L. Jones, Derlwyn, Liberal (retiring alderman) 42
- R.W. Stephens, Coedybrain, Liberal (retiring alderman) 41
- David Evans, Llangennech, Liberal (retiring alderman)38
In addition, the following four new aldermen were elected:
- Rev. William Davies, Llandilo, Liberal 38
- James Hill-Johnes, Dolaucothy, Conservative (defeated candidate at Caio) 35
- Rev. W. Thomas, Whitland, Liberal (elected member for Whitland) 38
- John Williams, Llanginning, Liberal 35 (defeated candidate at St Clears)
One retiring alderman was elected as councillor but not re-elected as alderman:
- Gwilym Evans, Liberal
Two aldermen were not re-elected
- J. Bagnall Evans, Liberal
- Robert Scourfield, Llansteffan, Liberal