Will Brecon experience a Farage election bounce?

Nigel Farage's high profile could hit Brecon, Radnor and Cwmtawe Tories

Who said a summer election?

The drizzle, gloom and chilly wind of Brecon would beg to differ.

Brecon might not be the first place that springs to mind when you ponder whether Reform will get a Nigel Farage bounce on election day.

But the polls in the Brecon, Radnor and Cwmtawe constituency are tight, and even a small swing from Conservative to Reform could leave the Tories with work to do to win this seat again.

The Conservatives won it at the 2019 general election, after the Lib Dems had taken it at a by-election earlier that year.

A YouGov poll on Monday suggests it is almost neck and neck between both parties, with Labour not far behind.

Experts have said that Mr Farage’s decision to enter the fray could damage Conservative prospects in Wales.

It’s fair to say though - on the basis of who we spoke to - that the enthusiasm for Mr Farage and the election more widely matched the weather.

Would 51-year-old Sophie Clubb from the town vote for Reform?

“Absolutely not. I don’t agree with their policies. I don’t think Nigel Farage is saying anything that appeals to me,” she said.

Romec Shadrach says he may vote tactically at this election

Oliver Leng, from Penybont in Powys, seemed reluctant to put a cross in Reform’s box on 4 July, but admitted the door was possibly open.

“All the politicians are the same,” he complained.

Sophie Cornell, 37, from Bronllys said there is “no way” Mr Farage’s decision to stand for election and become Reform leader would persuade her to vote for the party.

“I think he’s just an attention seeker really,” she said.

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Romec Shadrach, a 25-year-old from Pontardawe, is a voter with a choice.

He says in his town results had usually been a forgone conclusion, but that he might now vote tactically, after the town was moved into this new constituency under recent boundary changes.

He said he didn’t think he would vote for Reform, but that this election would be different “because it matters more”.

“In the past it didn’t really matter,” he said.

He wouldn’t be drawn on who his tactical vote might go to and from whom.

Sophie Clubb: "I don’t think Nigel Farage is saying anything that appeals to me"

“I think people in Brecon are a bit divided," 38-year-old Sophia Zafar told me. She runs a business in Brecon.

"I’ve seen gatherings to raise funds for the Middle East but I have also seen the opposite voice.”

“I think people are quite relaxed and just want to get on with things. They don’t really seem that worried about politics."

The enthusiasm for 4 July and the campaign might not have sparked into life here yet.

In a town and constituency where every vote might count the lack of election posters both here and driving through Bannau Brycheiniog (previously know as Brecon Beacons) is stark.

But on election night itself, it will be one of the places that plenty of political parties will be getting excited about.