2022 Ceredigion County Council election
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
5 May 2022
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
All 38 (previously 42) seats to Ceredigion County Council 20 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Map showing the results of the 2022 Ceredigion County Council elections. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 2022 Ceredigion County Council election took place on 5 May 2022 to elect 38 members to Ceredigion 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. The previous all-council election took place in May 2017 and future elections will take place every five years.
Council elections in Wales were originally scheduled for May 2021, but were delayed to avoid a conflict with the 2021 Senedd election. The frequency of the elections was also increased from 4 years to five years to avoid future clashes, meaning (after 2022) the next council election is expected in 2027.
The number of councillors was decreased by 4 after the Local Democracy and Boundary Commission for Wales recommended the change in a report in May 2019.[1] The number of wards was also decreased to 34 from 40.[2]
Plaid Cymru groups in conjunction with Independent group had been in control of the council since 2012. Ellen ap Gwynn had been the leader of the council and leader of the Plaid Cymru group in the council since 2012, but she stepped back from that role after the elections. Bryan Davies, the County Councillor for Llannarth was chosen as the successor of ap Gwynn and leader of the Plaid Cymru group.[3]
Ward Changes
In August 2021 Welsh Government accepted a number of ward change proposals by the Local Democracy and Boundary Commission for Wales, with slight modifications on Welsh language names for some wards. These took effect from the 2022 council election. The changes gave a better parity of representation. 4 wards; Aberystwyth Penparcau, Aberystwyth Morlais a Glais, Beulah and Llangoedmor and Aberporth and Y Ferwig will be electing 2 councillors. 19 current wards will see no change under these reforms.[4]
- The existing Rhyd-y-Fuwch and Teifi wards in the town of Cardigan were merged to create a single electoral ward named Cardigan-Teifi.
- The existing Aberporth ward was merged with the community of y Ferwig (previously in the Llangoedmor ward) to create a new two-member electoral ward named Aberporth and Y Ferwig.
- The existing Beulah ward was merged with the community of Llangoedmor to create a new two-member electoral ward named Beulah and Llangoedmor.
- The Capel Dewi and Trefol wards in the community of Llandysul were merged to create a new electoral ward named Llandysul South.
- The existing Troedyraur ward was combined with the Pontshaen and Tregroes wards of the community of Llandysul to create a new electoral ward named Llandysul North and Troedyraur.
- The existing New Quay ward was combined with the community of Llanllwchaearn to create a new electoral ward named New Quay and Llanllwchaearn.
- The communities of Llandysiliogogo and Llangrannog were combined to create a new electoral ward named Llandysilio and Llangrannog.
- The existing Penbryn ward was replaced by a new ward of the same name comprising only the community of Penbryn.
- The existing Aberaeron ward was combined with the LLanddewi Aberarth ward of the community of Dyffryn Arth to create a new electoral ward named Aberaeron and Aberarth.
- The existing Llansanffraid ward was replaced by a ward of the same name comprising the community of Llansanffraid and the Llanbadarn Trefeglwys ward of the community of Dyffryn Arth.
- The existing Lampeter ward continues with the same boundaries but with one councillor rather than two.
Candidates by party
A total of 86 candidates stood for the 38 seats on the council (an average of 2.3 candidates per seat). Six political parties stood candidates in this election, plus 27 independent candidates.
Five candidates (two independent, one Plaid Cymru, one Liberal Democrat, one Labour) were the only candidates in their ward, and were thus returned unopposed without an election taking place.
| Party | Number of candidates | Number of wards | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plaid Cymru | 30 | 26 | |
| Independent | 27 | 24 | |
| Liberal Democrats | 12 | 11 | |
| Labour | 9 | 8 | |
| Green | 5 | 5 | |
| Conservative | 2 | 1 | |
| Gwlad | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 86 / 38 | 34 | |
Overview of results
Plaid Cymru won control of Ceredigion County Council in this election. With the number of seats reduced to 38, 20 seats were required for an outright majority. Plaid Cymru won 20 seats (no net change), independents lost four seats, while the Liberal Democrats lost one seat to Gwlad.[5]
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plaid Cymru | 20 | N/A | N/A | 52.6 | 48.5 | 13,228 | +12.4 | ||
| Independent | 9 | N/A | N/A | 23.7 | 27.7 | 7,548 | -5.0 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | 7 | N/A | N/A | 18.4 | 14.3 | 3,898 | -8.5 | ||
| Labour | 1 | N/A | N/A | 2.6 | 5.1 | 1,405 | -1.4 | ||
| Gwlad | 1 | N/A | N/A | 2.6 | 1.1 | 290 | New | ||
| Green | 0 | N/A | N/A | 0.0 | 2.6 | 709 | +1.7 | ||
| Conservative | 0 | N/A | N/A | 0.0 | 0.4 | 103 | -0.6 | ||
| Total | 38 | 27,282 | |||||||