Plaid victory in Ceredigion leaves Wales without Lib Dem MP

  • Published
Media caption,

Ben Lake said the campaign had a "young jolt of energy".

Plaid Cymru has taken the Ceredigion seat from Wales' only Liberal Democrat.

Ben Lake, the country's youngest MP at 24, defeated the Lib Dem's leader in Wales, Mark Williams, after two recounts, taking 11,623 votes compared with 11,519.

Meanwhile, Conservative Glyn Davies has retained the Montgomeryshire seat, taking 51.8% of the vote share.

Chris Davies held Brecon and Radnorshire, taking 20,081 votes against the Lib Dem's 12,043.

Image caption,

Leanne Wood said the team in Ceredigion was delighted

Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood said Mr Lake fought "an energetic and positive campaign" and would make "an excellent MP".

She said his addition to the three seats the party held in 2015 would give Wales "a formidable voice to defend Wales" in Westminster.

Mr Lake said the win had been "unexpected".

"We have been able to run a very positive campaign and also engage with a lot of young people," he added.

The chair of the Welsh Lib Dem national executive committee Carole O'Toole called the Ceredigion result "a sad day for liberalism in Wales".

She added: "Mark Williams has worked tirelessly for the communities of Ceredigion and for Wales since 2005, leading campaigns to change the legal definition of child neglect, to secure a better deal for milk farmers, and standing up for rural Wales.

"This is a difficult result for us following the results in last year's assembly elections and we will need to take stock and consider how we move forward from here."

Image caption,

Wales' only Liberal Democrat MP, the party's leader in Wales Mark Williams, has lost his seat

Image source, Laura Elliott