Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party faces an early test of its popularity in Wales tomorrow.
A by-election will take place in the Milford Haven Hakin ward on Pembrokeshire County Council.
It comes as Nigel Farage’s Reform UK looks set to make serious gains in the Welsh parliamentary elections this May, alongside Plaid Cymru.
GB News has taken a look at who is standing in Milford Haven Hakin and what the result could mean for the upcoming Senedd contests.
Milford Hakin (Pembrokeshire)
Councillor Mike Stoddart died in January
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PEMBROKESHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL
The Milford Haven Hakin by-election was called after the death of independent county councillor Mike Stoddart in January.
The former journalist, who founded the Milford Mercury newspaper, was first elected in 2004 and won every election as an independent candidate. He last won the seat in 2022, with a majority of 110 votes.
The council leader, Jon Harvey, said: “I pass on the condolences of everyone at the council to his family and many friends.
“Mike was the prime example of what someone in local politics should be, working for and demanding better for his constituents. Mike was unashamedly forthright. He would argue his corner with conviction and always with facts on his side.
“He has kept me and many predecessors as leader firmly on our toes. The chamber and Pembrokeshire as a whole will be much poorer for his loss.
Nicola Harteveld has withdrawn from the race
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PA
The Welsh Labour candidate had decided to withdraw from the by-election after her teenage son was verbally abused by two strangers.
Nicola Harteveld dropped out of the contest after two men in their 40s or 50s shouted at her 14-year-old son, describing his mother as “Labour loving” with an expletive.
She told the BBC: “If that’s people’s mindset where they can say on the street to someone, to a child, words like that then I’m not prepared for my family to be subject to that.”
A Welsh Labour spokesman said: “As a party, Welsh Labour is saddened that Nicola has had to take the decision due to abuse directed at her and her family. That’s not politics, it’s intimidation.
“Welsh Labour does not condone harassment and intimidation of any political candidate, elected representative or their families. This incident has been reported to Dyfed-Powys Police and it has been logged as a criminal offence of harassment. Police investigations are under way.”
The bulk of Pembrokeshire County Council is made up of independent councillors, with 34 out of the 60 elected not affiliated to any party.
Out of the 34, 19 sit together as the “Independent Group”.
During the 2024 general election, the Mid and South Pembrokeshire seat was won by Labour’s Henry Tufnell, who beat the former Conservative minister Stephen Crabb with a majority of 1,878
.THE FULL LIST OF CANDIDATES STANDING IN THE MILFORD HAKIN BY-ELECTION:
- Derrick Abbott – Independent
- Sam Booth – Wales Green Party
- Lee James Bridges – Independent
- Duncan Edwards – Independent
- Brian Taylor – Welsh Conservatives
- Scott Thorley – Reform UK
- Sam Warden – Welsh Liberal Democrats
Voters in Wales will have their say for who runs the Senedd
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PAIn May, voters across Wales will go to the polls as part of a “once in century change” in the Senedd, as the number of politicians elected to Cardiff Bay increase from 60 to 96.
The election will also see the number of constituencies cut from 40 to 16, with each one represented by six MSs all elected via a new proportional system.
Following their victory in last October’s Caerphilly by-election, Plaid Cymru emerged as favourites to win power in the upcoming election.
Plaid’s leader Rhun ap Iorwerth said the spring election would be a two-horse race between his party and Reform UK, arguing the vote represented “politics that looks backwards” or leadership that stands up for Wales and brings people together.
He said: “We want to empower people by giving them more say over their future on a national level in Wales. As the UK fragments, we must focus on fostering co-operation based on shared values, mutual respect, and principled collaboration.
“The old union as it was is finished, so let us replace it with new alliances, underpinned by radical pragmatism, partnership and principle. A Celtic bloc, for example, can be a force for good for all who live within it.”
Meanwhile, Reform UK’s leader in Wales, Dan Thomas, said Nigel Farage’s party represented a “blueprint for real change”.
He said: “These promises put Wales and Welsh communities first, and unlike the pledges put forward by other parties, these are deliverable. Armed with this blueprint, we have all the building blocks to end a generation of decline here in Wales.”