Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr
| Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr | |
|---|---|
| County multi-member constituency for the Senedd | |
 Boundary of Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr in Wales | |
| Principal areas | |
| Preserved county | |
| Population | 205,358 (2024)[1] |
| Major settlements | Abercynon, Aberdare, Llantrisant, Merthyr Tydfil, Mountain Ash, Pontypridd, |
| Current County multi-member constituency | |
| Created | 2026 |
| Seats | 6 |
| MS | Heledd Fychan, Jason O'Connell, Lis McLean, David Hughes, Sara Crowley, Vikki Howells |
| Created from |
|
Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr (Welsh for 'Pontypridd, Cynon, [and] Merthyr (Tydfil)'; ⓘ) is a six-member constituency of the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; Welsh: Senedd Cymru) used in the 2026 Senedd election. It covers areas in the south-east of Wales, particularly parts of Merthyr Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf.
It was proposed following the 2026 review of Senedd constituencies, and was a pairing of the two UK Parliament constituencies of Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare and Pontypridd. It has a Welsh-only name.
Boundaries
A Senedd constituency comprising the boundaries of the UK Parliament constituencies of Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare and Pontypridd, has been proposed by the Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru for the 2026 election to the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; Senedd Cymru). It was initially proposed using the English name Merthyr Tydfil, Aberdare and Pontypridd in September 2024,[2] but was renamed to Merthyr Cynon Taf in December proposals with most constituencies using Welsh-only names.[3] It was then given the Welsh-only name Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr and its boundaries were confirmed in the commission's final recommendations in March 2025.[4] When announcing their candidates, Reform UK used "Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare, Pontypridd" instead, using the English names for the pair of UK Parliament constituencies that form it.[5]
It encompasses parts of the principal areas (county boroughs) of Merthyr Tydfil County Borough and Rhondda Cynon Taf in South Wales. The constituency was established in 2026, following the passing of the Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Act 2024. The act legislates electoral reform of the Senedd to create 16 larger "super constituencies", pairing the 32 UK Parliament constituencies in Wales, and using a new fully proportional voting system, with each constituency electing six Members of the Senedd (MSs) rather than one previously.[2]
Members of the Senedd
| Term | Election | Distribution | MS | MS | MS | MS | MS | MS | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7th | 2026 |
|
Heledd Fychan (PC) |
Jason O'Connell (Ref) |
Lis McLean (PC) |
David Hughes (Ref) |
Sara Crowley (PC) |
Vikki Howells (Lab) | |||||||||
Elections
Elections in the 2020s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plaid Cymru | Heledd Fychan Lis McLean Sara Crowley Ian Gwynne Farrell Perks Ioan Bellin |
28,687 | 39.3 | ||
| Reform | Jason O'Connell David Hughes Mark Lawrence Martin Roberts John Ball Jamie Loftus |
22,217 | 30.5 | ||
| Labour | Vikki Howells Lloyd Watkins Chris Binding Mitch Theaker Mustapha Maohoub Anna Williams Price Jane Gebbie |
9,344 | 12.8 | ||
| Conservative | Adam Robinson David William Jones Roxanne Rees Lee Davies Oliver Morgan Jayne McKenna |
4,339 | 6.0 | ||
| Green | Angela Karadog James Bennett John Le Marchant Dane Georgina Budd Zara Siddique Jeff Baxter |
3,466 | 4.8 | ||
| Independent | Beth Winter | 2,297 | 3.2 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Neil Feist David Seale Alec Dauncey Nick Beckett Chris Passmore Hayden Lewis[7] |
1,393 | 1.9 | ||
| Heritage | Julie Lloyd | 431 | 0.6 | ||
| Gwlad | Stef Morgan | 202 | 0.3 | ||
| Independent | Dai Williams | 148 | 0.2 | ||
| Independent | Joseph Biddulph | 104 | 0.1 | ||
| Majority | |||||
| Turnout | 72847 | ||||
| Registered electors | |||||
| win (new seat) | |||||
| 2021 notional result [a] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Vote | % | Seats | |
| Labour | 32,067 | 52.5 | 4 | |
| Plaid Cymru | 12,061 | 19.7 | 1 | |
| Conservative | 9,681 | 15.8 | 1 | |
| Abolish | 1,836 | 3.0 | 0 | |
| Independent | 1,468 | 2.4 | 0 | |
| Liberal Democrats | 1,386 | 2.3 | 0 | |
| Reform UK | 1,040 | 1.7 | 0 | |
| Propel | 816 | 1.3 | 0 | |
| Green | 464 | 0.8 | 0 | |
| UKIP | 304 | 0.5 | 0 | |
Notes
- ↑ Estimate of the 2021 Senedd election result as if the revised boundaries recommended under the 2026 boundary review were in place
References
- ↑ "Data for the Senedd Cymru constituency areas: 2026". gov.wales. 20 March 2026. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
- 1 2 Hayward, Will (2 September 2024). "The full details of Wales' 16 new constituencies for Senedd elections". Wales Online. Retrieved 28 February 2025.
- ↑ "Proposed Senedd constituency names divides opinion". ITV News. 17 December 2024.
- ↑ Price, Emily (11 March 2025). "New Senedd 'super constituencies' confirmed". Nation.Cymru. Retrieved 11 March 2025.
- ↑ Mosalski, Ruth (25 March 2026). "Reform UK got the names of all the new Senedd constituencies wrong". Wales Online. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
- ↑ "Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr". Vote.Wales. Retrieved 14 April 2026.
- ↑ "Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr". Welsh Liberal Democrats. Retrieved 6 January 2025.