BBC Homepage
  • Skip to content
  • Accessibility Help
  • Your account
  • Notifications
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • More menu
More menu
Search BBC
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
Close menu
BBC News
Menu
  • Home
  • InDepth
  • Israel-Gaza war
  • War in Ukraine
  • Climate
  • UK
  • World
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Culture
More
  • Tech
  • Science
  • Health
  • Family & Education
  • In Pictures
  • Newsbeat
  • BBC Verify
  • Disability
  • Wales
  • Wales Politics
  • Wales Business
  • North West
  • North East
  • Mid
  • South West
  • South East
  • Cymru

Welsh election results 2022: Tories lose their only council

  • Published
    6 May 2022
  • comments
    1158 Comments
Share page
About sharing
Related topics
  • Wales local elections 2022
Vote counting at Brangwyn Hall in Swansea
Image caption,

Vote counting at Brangwyn Hall, Swansea

The Conservatives have lost control of their only council in Wales.

Labour has become the biggest party in Monmouthshire, with the final results now declared in the county.

Elsewhere across Wales, Labour gained two councils and lost one, and Plaid Cymru gained three.

Labour regained Blaenau Gwent and Bridgend, and held Caerphilly, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Newport and Torfaen, while Plaid retained Gwynedd and gained Anglesey.

  • LIVE: Follow Welsh results live

  • Welsh results confirm Tories' worst fears

  • Plaid Cymru continues Gwynedd dominance

  • Independents lose overall control in Wrexham

  • Labour make gains as Conservatives fear 'hard pain'

  • Plaid Cymru takes control of Ceredigion

Monmouthshire was the only local authority held by the Tories, but Labour will have more seats this time, and it falls to No Overall Control (NOC).

Welsh Labour leader Mark Drakeford said it had been a "good day for Labour" while Senedd Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies said he accepted things "might not have gone our way".

'We've made gains in every part of Wales'

Mark DrakefordImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Labour First Minister Mark Drakeford at the count in Cardiff

First Minister Mr Drakeford said: "We've made gains in every part of Wales, (doing) especially well where it's been the Conservatives who have been our main opponents".

The Welsh Labour leader said it set the ground for the party to win seats back lost at the 2019 general election.

Tory Mr Davies said: "We went into these elections with a difficult national picture and it appears that has had an impact."

But he said the Tories had a strong brand. "We have to build on that strong Welsh Conservative brand in the coming months," he said.

The final result in 46-seat Monmouthshire was Labour 22 seats (up 12), Conservatives 18 (down 12), Greens one (up one), Others five (up one). BBC Wales has been told that the Greens will work with Labour.

One seat in the Llanfoist ward had to be settled by a coin toss after the Labour and Conservative candidates finished neck and neck. The coin came down in favour of the Tory.

David Davies
Image caption,

Monmouth MP David Davies says he will continue to support the Tory leadership whatever the results

line

What do we know?

Labour remains the biggest party in Wales, now controlling eight of the country's 22 councils.

Another 10 councils will not be in the control of any single party, while Plaid Cymru control four authorities.

Having lost Monmouthshire, the Welsh Conservatives have been left with no councils.

There were recounts due in wards in Flintshire and Vale of Glamorgan, but these will not affect the overall results and both councils will be under no overall control.

Wales Election Results
line

The Liberal Democrats made gains in Powys, while the Green Party won seats in seven councils.

Four council leaders lost their seats - in Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly, Carmarthenshire and Powys.

In Caerphilly, Labour leader Philippa Marsden received 213 votes in the Ynysddu ward, and was well beaten by two independents - Jan Jones with 1,162 and Janine Reed with 1,150.

The Conservative leader of Monmouthshire, Richard John, spoke of the "hard pain" of results overall for the party.

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Jane Dodds said it was the start of a "comeback" for her party after making significant gains in Powys, where they were the largest party with 24 seats.

She believed voters were "trusting us again" as a credible alternative to Labour and the Conservatives.

What are the results across Wales?

There will be no final result in Flintshire on Friday, with the results of four seats to be announced on Saturday after recounts, but the council will be under no overall control.

In Flintshire, 63 of 67 seats have been called. The current total is Labour 29, independent 28, Lib Dem four, Conservative two.

Plaid Cymru became the first party to win a council when it gained a majority in Gwynedd, and then later added Anglesey.

In Blaenau Gwent and Bridgend, Labour regained control from independents, with no overall control in Pembrokeshire or Denbighshire - where the Conservatives dropped from the largest party to fourth, with Labour having the most seats.

But Labour suffered a blow in Neath Port Talbot, where it lost its majority to no overall control.

Labour retained Caerphilly, Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taf and Torfaen, where the Tories lost their four seats.

Pauline Jarman
Image caption,

Plaid's Pauline Jarman lost in Rhondda Cynon Taf, depriving her of the chance to notch up a half century of service

In Merthyr Tydfil, it finished with 15 councillors each for Labour and independents.

There was no overall control in Powys - but the Liberal Democrats gained 10 seats.

The Green Party had their first councillors elected in seven councils, while Propel's one councillor, Neil McEvoy - a former Member of the Senedd (MS) - retained his seat in Fairwater, Cardiff.

line

What happens next?

If one party's won a majority - that's more than half of the councillors - it can start running the council.

So if there are 50 councillors in your local council, and party X wins more than 25, then party X is in charge.

But what if that doesn't happen? Then we say the council is under No Overall Control (NOC).

That happens a fair bit in Wales - last time around, in 2017, 10 of the 22 councils were NOC.

Then the parties have to get together and come up with a deal to decide who's going to run things - and that can take weeks. Don't worry though, your bins will still get collected.

You can see the results in your area here

line

South Wales East Conservative MS Natasha Asghar said people had "voted on national issues for a local election".

"I don't think this was the time of the place to have made this a statement vote for a lot of people out there, but at the end of the day, we live in a democracy, people have spoken so we have to go with what's decided," she said.

"I think national issues were dominating on the doorstep. I've campaigned with candidates across the region of the south east, and as much as everyone appreciates what the prime minister's been doing with the vaccine rollout and Ukraine.

"Now I think people are looking now more inwards and I think Partygate, Carriegate, whatever gate you want to call it, has been the focus and I think that was very much wrong."

Fellow South Wales East Conservative MS Laura Anne Jones agreed, but added: "There is going to be a natural reaction to a government that's been in power for 12 years (in Westminster)."

Hopkin/Hopkins family
Image caption,

Three members of the same family won seats for Labour in Swansea: Beverley Hopkins, Nicola Matthews and David Hopkins

It was the end of an era in Rhondda Cynon Taf with Plaid Cymru's Pauline Jarman losing her seat after 46 years.

Ms Jarman, also a former member of the Welsh assembly, had represented Cynon Valley, but after boundary changes, failed to win one of two seats in Mountain Ash.

Francesca O'Brien and Richard Lewis
Image caption,

A family affair in Swansea, with Richard Lewis ready to welcome daughter Francesca to the council chambers

Another to lose her seat was Powys council's independent leader Rosemary Harris, who was beaten by the Liberal Democrats.

She said "hard decisions" that had to be made by the council given funding constraints contributed to her defeat.

She is one of four leaders so far to lose their seats. The others were independent Nigel Daniels in Blaenau Gwent, Labour's Philippa Marsden in Caerphilly, and Plaid's Emlyn Dole in Carmarthenshire - although he lost to fellow Plaid candidate Llinos Mai Davies.

Council elections have also taken place in Scotland and parts of England, and votes are also being counted for the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Vote count on Anglesey
Top banner
  • POSTCODE SEARCH: What are the results in my area?, external

  • IN FULL: All the Wales results, external

Bottom banner

In the last set of elections in 2017, Labour was the largest party, followed by independents, with Plaid Cymru third, the Conservatives fourth and the Liberal Democrats fifth.

Those running the councils will have to grapple with delivering a huge range of services from leisure centres to care for the elderly, as well as setting council tax and managing budgets.

In some councils where no party wins more than half the seats - known as "no overall control" - there may be talks lasting several weeks to decide who runs the authority.

Who won in my council area?

Enter your postcode, or the name of your English, Scottish or Welsh council area to find out. There are no council elections in Northern Ireland.

  • Scroll with two fingers to move on the map

  • Pinch to zoom in and out on the map

  • Click on an area in the map to see the results

  • Use one finger to scroll past the map

2022 Previous

There are no council or mayoral elections in Northern Ireland, but there are National Assembly elections.

See the results in full on the BBC website
    Refresh the page to load the latest results

    Related topics

    • Wales
    • Pembrokeshire County Council
    • Wales local elections 2022

    More on this story

    • Welsh local elections confirm Tories' worst fears

      • Published
        6 May 2022
      Boris Johnson wearing a Welsh flag face mask
    • A simple guide to the Welsh council elections

      • Published
        25 March 2022
      Polling station with bilingual sign
    • Labour make gains as Tories lose only council

      • Published
        6 May 2022
      Labour celebrating its win in Blaenau Gwent

    Top stories

    • McCann stalker contacted Maddie's sister, court told

      • Published
        2 hours ago
    • Conservatives would scrap stamp duty, Badenoch announces

      • Published
        38 minutes ago
    • Badenoch hopes to grab attention with policy blitz

      • Published
        4 hours ago

    More to explore

    • High security a fact of life for UK Jewish community living in fear of attack

      Members of the Community Security Trust (CST) speak to a police officer at the cordon near the scene of an incident at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue in Crumpsall, Manchester
    • Why Pickford is England's undisputed number one

      • Attribution
        Sport
      England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford
    • 'One of the greatest things' - Nigeria's art innovators on display in London

      Jimoh Buraimoh, Figural Abstract 1973. Kavita Chellaram. Image courtesy of kó, Lagos © Jimoh Buraimoh
    • Dazzling supermoon illuminates skylines around the world

      The bright supermoon sitting at the tip of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
    • Dog attacks are still rising - even after the XL bully ban

      Montage image showing an XL bully dog and a demonstration by those opposing a ban on the breed
    • Romesh Ranganathan on overexposure and acting with Sheridan Smith

      Romesh Ranganathan pictured in front of a navy blue wall, looking at the camera, in March 2024
    • 'I sleep with a gas mask on': Life next to Portland protest angering Trump

      Brennah Hammar wearing the mask that she sleeps in and sunglasses, standing inside her apartment. There are stacks of items on a dresser, and bare yellow walls
    • Charlie Mackesy reveals much of his new book was lost when iPad was stolen

      An image from Charlie Mackesey's new book showing the fox and the boy
    • The Upbeat newsletter: Start your week on a high with uplifting stories delivered to your inbox

      A graphic of a wave in the colours of yellow, amber and orange against a pink sky
    loading elsewhere stories

    Most read

    1. 1

      McCann stalker contacted Maddie's sister, court told

    2. 2

      ChatGPT image snares suspect in deadly Pacific Palisades fire

    3. 3

      Dolly Parton posts 'I ain't dead yet' after sister sparks health concerns

    4. 4

      It was a normal Saturday night in my pub - then Justin Bieber waltzed in

    5. 5

      Conservatives would scrap stamp duty, Badenoch announces

    6. 6

      Al-Shamie pledged allegiance to 'IS' in 999 call

    7. 7

      Big Brother contestant removed over 'unacceptable language'

    8. 8

      Baroness Lawrence calls for new investigation after killer admits attack

    9. 9

      What you need to know ahead of Celebrity Traitors

    10. 10

      Chemistry Nobel awarded for work on new materials that could help planet

    BBC News Services

    • On your mobile
    • On smart speakers
    • Get news alerts
    • Contact BBC News

    Best of the BBC

    • Rom-com starring Aimee Lou Wood and Nabhaan Rizwan

      • Attribution
        iPlayer

      Added to Watchlist
      Film Club has been added to your iPlayer Watchlist.
      Film Club
    • Exposing a pro-Russian fake news operation

      • Attribution
        iPlayer

      Added to Watchlist
      Global Eye has been added to your iPlayer Watchlist.
      Global Eye: Inside a Pro-Russian Fake News Operation
    • Leonardo DiCaprio discusses his new film

      • Attribution
        iPlayer

      Added to Watchlist
      Movies With Ali Plumb has been added to your iPlayer Watchlist.
      Movies With Ali Plumb: Leonardo DiCaprio in Conversation
    • The rise and downfall of Margaret Thatcher

      • Attribution
        iPlayer

      Added to Watchlist
      Thatcher: A Very British Revolution has been added to your iPlayer Watchlist.
      Thatcher: A Very British Revolution
    • Home
    • News
    • Sport
    • Weather
    • iPlayer
    • Sounds
    • Bitesize
    • CBBC
    • CBeebies
    • Food
    • Terms of Use
    • About the BBC
    • Privacy Policy
    • Cookies
    • Accessibility Help
    • Parental Guidance
    • Contact the BBC
    • Make an editorial complaint
    • BBC emails for you

    Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.