A CHANCE for Ceredigion to be the first council in Wales adopt an alternative way councillors are elected has failed despite more members present being in favour of the change.
All county councillors in Wales are currently elected using a simple majority system, commonly known as first past the post (FPTP), as used in general elections, with the option of a change to a system known as the Single Transferable Vote (STV) under 2021 legislation, a change that would not affect town and community council elections.
The more complex STV system differs in a number of ways, including that every single county council ward would need to be larger and multi-member, of between three and six members, with voters ranking the candidates according to their order of preference.
The potential change would also see an increase in election costs, estimated to be between £45,000 and £56,000.
Back in March, Ceredigion councillors backed a public consultation being held on the alternative system, with 67 per cent of 475 responses favouring the change, leading to a special meeting of Ceredigion County Council being held today, November 14.
To make the change, at least two thirds of councillors would have to be in favour of it.
Speaking at the meeting, Aberaeron county councillor, and Liberal Democrat group leader Cllr Elizabeth Evans said it was “no secret” she was in support of the change, saying: “I see our communities changing, they’re more transient and less engaged; how many times have we heard: ‘Our vote doesn’t count’?”
She said the STV system would “dilute one-party dominance,” making for closer consensus politics.
Speaking about the current system, Cllr Evans said: “Any particular party can put up a donkey and they get voted in, not a healthy situation. Voter engagement is down, there’s a real voter apathy.”
She conceded there were ‘cons’ to the change, of larger wards and more complex voting, and the possibility of some councillors in multi-member ward not working as hard as others.
“Regardless of all this, I really still think this is an ambitious proposal for local government; when we look at the 67 per cent favouring STV, a lot of younger people want STV, it shows they want to see change, that we don’t have uncontested seats.
“You can argue us voting for this is turkeys voting for Christmas, but we do have to listen to our young people.”
Cllr Caryl Roberts also backed the change, saying it offered “a fairer system,” which Ceredigion should not shy back from awaiting other councils; Cllr Keith Henson saying: “The people of Ceredigion are clever enough to understand the system, as Caryl said we need to be at the forefront in Ceredigion.”
Another supporting the change was Cllr Alun Williams who said it would lead to “genuine consensus,” adding: “Gone would be the days when people say: ‘There’s no point in voting, my vote doesn’t count,’ everyone’s vote will count, and that can only be good for our communities.”
However, there were many in the council against a change, Cllr Rhodri Evans, who said: “My feeling is I believe the STV is the wrong route to go down, two counties [Powys and Gwynedd] and ourselves have gone in [for votes] the two other counties have voted against the STV.”
He was joined by Cllr Gareth Lloyd, who said the decision to change the system or not should have been made across Wales’ 22 local authorities rather than on an individual basis, with only three counties backing a consultation.
“If we do pass this, we will be the only local authority in Wales doing it; I don’t think that now is the time, even if you’re 100 per cent behind this, at a time when money is sparse.”
He finished: “I would ask everybody to vote against it, I don’t think we’re ready for the next election.”
Another was Cllr John Robert, who said the 475 responses from 70,000 residents showed “people don’t really have the desire for these politics”.
The vote to adopt the STV system saw 18 members in favour and 17 against, not making the two-thirds requirement of those present for it to pass.
Gwynedd voted in October: 45 in favour of STV, 22 against, one abstention, and one councillor not present.
Powys alsol voted in October with 21 in favour of STV, 33 against, and five abstentions, with nine not present.
STV call
Following the vote, Electoral Reform Society Cymru is calling on Welsh Government and parties in the Senedd to bring in STV for all councils across Wales.
Jess Blair, Director of ERS Cymru, said: “The decisions made in council chambers affect everyone in those areas, which is why it is crucial that at local elections every vote counts and every voice is heard.
“However, at the last election we witnessed the farcical situation of more than 100,000 people in Wales being denied a vote as the First Past the Post voting system meant dozens of seats were decided without a single vote being cast.
“So, it is not surprising that when asked about moving to a fairer voting system people in Wales responded overwhelmingly positively, with over 60 per cent of people in favour of moving to the fairer Single Transferable Vote system of proportional representation everywhere it was consulted on.
“Today we saw a second council, Ceredigion, vote with a majority in favour of ditching FPTP in favour of STV for their elections – yet the move will again be denied.
“The move to a fairer electoral system is being blocked on a technicality as councils needed to reach a two-thirds majority, creating an absurd situation where councils are now stuck with an unfair voting system, they have voted to by a majority reject, and local people have clearly said they don’t want.
“The onus is now on the Welsh Government to address this unfair, undemocratic situation and act to avoid a repeat of the last local elections where thousands more people are locked out of having a vote.
“We would urge ministers to follow the example of other UK countries, such as Scotland, and bring in STV for all Welsh councils at the same time, ensuring every vote cast in Welsh local elections matters.”