(Alamy)
2 min read
Welsh First Minister Eluned Morgan has lost her seat as Labour faces a historic collapse in Wales.
It was confirmed on Friday afternoon that Labour had won no seats in her Ceredigion Penfro constituency under Wales’ proportional voting system.
Plaid Cymru, which is currently expected to form the next government in Cardiff, won 36 per cent of the vote to pick up three seats, while Reform UK came second with 26 per cent of the vote, giving the party two seats.
The Conservatives came third, winning one seat, while Labour fell sharply to fourth place.
The Labour collapse in Wales will be seen as one of the most bruising results for Prime Minister Keir Starmer as his leadership comes under renewed pressure.
Labour has been in power in Wales since its devolved institutions were set up at the turn of the century, with every first minister in Cardiff being Labour.
Earlier today, a Labour spokesperson told the BBC that the party expects to have a “group of around 10” members in the bigger 96-member Senedd, compared with the 30 elected to a 60-seat Welsh Parliament five years ago.
Outgoing first minister Morgan took responsibility for the result and did not lay the blame with Starmer, who she said was “not on the ballot”.
Morgan said: “It is clear that results across the whole of the United Kingdom have demonstrated deep frustration with the Labour Party, we need to go back to being the party of the working class.
“We need the Labour government nationally to change course, we need the wealth of this nation to be more equally distributed, away from the south east.”
She added: “The old certainties have been swept aside in our defenses were shattered. We know in the Labour Party, we have tough days ahead, but we are confident that the sun will shine again.”