Ymlaen Llanelli!

Nia Griffith, Labour 15,916
Myfanwy Davies, Plaid Cymru 11,215
Christopher Salmon, Conservative 5,381
Myrddin Edwards, Liberal Democrat 3,902
Andrew Marshall, UK Independence Party 1,047

Having had a full week to catch up on my sleep, I thought I'd better share some thoughts on the Llanelli election result with you.

I am delighted to say that the result represents a 4% swing to Plaid from Labour. We achieved the highest ever vote for Plaid in any general election and our share of the vote increased by just under 3.5%. Well done all!

These successes are particularly striking given the exceptionally difficult nature of the election for Plaid across Wales and in Llanelli. Turnout was unusually high at nearly 70%, likely to be due in part to the televised debates that of course excluded Plaid. It is also probable that turnout among traditional Labour supporters was higher due to last-minute scaremongering from Labour politicians including Llanelli’s incumbent MP to vote Labour to keep the Tories out. False assertions that Plaid would form a coalition with the Tories undoubtedly cowed some voters into remaining with Labour.

Plaid’s canvassing returns were unusually strong during the last weeks of the campaign suggesting that a majority of people in Llanelli want to vote Plaid. It seems that this time they felt, faced with the increasing threat of a Conservative administration, that voting Labour was a necessary evil.

It is sad to reflect that despite these convenient local appeals to keep the Tories out, this week Labour then chose to pass on the keys to number 10 to the Tories rather than pursue talks with Plaid and the SNP to spare our communities the worst of the cuts. Locally, leaflets accusing Plaid of wanting to support slash and burn cuts in a Conservative budget will leave a bitter taste in the mouths of voters who have been abandoned to those same cuts by a Labour party keen to pursue its own electoral advantage in opposition.

Of course, we would have liked to have done better and it would have been an honour for me to stand up for Llanelli during what are going to be very tough years but I am very pleased with the result. It shows us gaining ground in the most difficult possible of circumstances. The result provides us with a solid base for the growth of Plaid in Llanelli. The campaign has also allowed us to develop an excellent base of talented and committed activists to help us fight the elections of 2011 and 2012.

Finally, I’d like to thank everyone who has helped and supported me over the past two-and-a-half years of the campaign. I am immensely proud of the work that has been achieved, by members and supporters many of whom were new to politics who wanted to stand together for a better Llanelli. Thanks also to everyone who has sent me messages since the election and yes, I want to continue to be useful in any way I can to help Llanelli and communities like ours across Wales to stand up for ourselves and for each other.

If this election teaches us anything, it is that nobody else will do that for us.

Ymlaen Llanelli!!