I'm meant to be taking a break from blogging but, thanks to Plaid Wrecsam, I've just seen that my friend Ian Johnson has won a by-election seat in the Vale of Glamorgan from Labour with a swing of 12.3%.
So let me add my congratulations to those of the Speaker of the House of Commons.
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9 comments:
Big result. Plaid is the only party that has managed to take seats off Labour in Wales during a Labour surge. Great stuff.
Looks like a great result.
However is there anybody from the Vale that can tell us more? i.e was the Labour candidate a poor one? is Ian popular in the area? or is it a general tren towards Plaid in the area??
John Bercow looks delighted to have found someone shorter than he is.
But Ian's trying hard to emulate him in developing a statesmanlike chin ;-))
Ian and Plaid have been campaigning in that ward properly for 5 years. Not just turning up with one leaflet 3 weeks before an election.
That's how you win against a tide.
Deserved for the Plaid crew in Barry, and a lesson for others.
#YMLAEN! Excellent news, and in the labour heartlands as well!
Newyddion gwych. Let's hope this is at least partly down to "The Leanne Effect", no disrespect to Ian Johnson.
John Bercow reminds me of Lt. Harris from "Police Academy". I wonder which MP is the one who makes all the funny noises?
I've done an analysis of Ian's victory here: http://penartharbyd.wordpress.com/2012/08/03/buttrills-2012/
I'll very belatedly pick up on a few points. First, Ian won a seat on the county council and town council, so a double victory. Full results here. Second, Ian has been working very hard (well that's what he says when he asks for money ;-) for a good number of years. That spadework forms the basis for his victory now. But Labour didn't really help themselves with the candidate they picked and took a win as a foregone conclusion, as Penarth's post notes. So it's quite possible for them to win the seats back next time, and a lot will depend on how effective Ian is now he has the job. I think he'll do fine. He's got a fairly high profile in the area and gets quoted by the local press on a regular basis. Plaid did well compared with most places in Wales by not losing any of their six seats on the Vale of Glamorgan Council in May. That shows strength in depth, and is a good base to work from.
I think this is probably a bigger factor than Leanne's leadership, Neilyn. But the two work nicely together. The whole point is for people to see Plaid as the most credible alternative to Labour across Wales, and Leanne's leadership will certainly help that.
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