DAYS THE BUDGET IS LATE: 38

VOTING RIGHTS DILEMMA: With Democrats’ national redistricting calculus now in disarray over today’s court order blocking new Virginia maps, party leaders are looking to New York as a prime opportunity to keep pace with Republicans.

But as top Democrats in the Empire State move ahead with their attempt to redraw lines in 2028, they’re also far more likely to pull their punches in the ongoing gerrymandering wars.

The Supreme Court’s decision last week to end a key provision of the Voting Rights Act allows states to break up districts previously drawn to accommodate minority voters. Republicans in states like Alabama and Tennessee are rushing to take advantage by dissolving majority Black districts. In New York — the state where Democrats have the most to gain by drawing new lines — there’s virtually no appetite to respond in kind, underscoring a looming barrier for blue states in the redistricting fight.

“People were walking across bridges and being mauled, and have lost their lives for these rights,” New York Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said of the VRA. “These laws are there because there has been a real effort to disenfranchise certain people, certainly Black people, from being able to vote. So we want to protect that.”

In the coming weeks, New York lawmakers are expected to begin the lengthy process of approving a constitutional amendment that would let them redraw congressional lines in 2028. If successful, the measure stands to turn a state with 19 Democrats and seven Republicans into one with a 22-4 or 23-3 edge.

Such an outcome is akin to what Republicans pushed through in Texas last summer — but not as extreme as the 9-0 Republican map Tennessee lawmakers drew Thursday by eliminating a Black majority district in Memphis.

In New York, a 26-0 map isn’t plausible. But in a deep blue state where Democrats routinely receive around 60 percent of the vote in statewide races, maps that feature tendrils extending from the Bronx and Brooklyn into the furthest regions of upstate and Long Island are possible. And such a reconfiguration would give Democrats an even greater advantage compared with maps they’ve floated in the not so distant past.

Doing that would require eliminating districts that were protected by the VRA until last week. Those districts include the Brooklyn seat held by House Minority Hakeem Jeffries.

“I don’t think we want to roll back protections for minority communities in New York,” said Senate Deputy Leader Mike Gianaris who’s led his conference’s redistricting efforts since 2012.

The fact that keeping these districts intact is a core personal political belief for leaders like Stewart-Cousins — and a political third rail for everyone in the state’s Democratic Party — will likely limit how aggressively Democrats will approach redistricting.

On Long Island, for example, Democrats might be able to draw lines in 2018 that increase the delegation from a tenuous 2-2 to a safer 3-1. But taking a swing at a 4-0 set of maps isn’t possible without destroying districts in Brooklyn and Queens.

Read more from Bill Mahoney in POLITICO Pro here.

From the Capitol

CASE CLOSED: State investigators closed two probes into undisclosed conflicts of interest by SUNY Downstate Medical Center’s former CEO, David Berger, according to records reviewed by POLITICO.

The New York State Office of the Inspector General and the state’s Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government each opened investigations into Berger upon a referral from SUNY.

Investigators confirmed Berger had professional relationships with multiple companies that had contracts with SUNY Downstate, which he did not initially report. But investigators also discovered Berger — and potentially hundreds of other SUNY Downstate employees — hadn’t been placed on the institution’s list of people required to file financial disclosures.

Richard Friedman, an attorney representing Berger, said his client promptly filed the necessary forms once notified of his obligations. Berger does not believe his affiliation with the companies created any conflicts of interest, Friedman added.

Berger, who was hired in 2020, reported serving as an adviser to digital health startups Plannery, Opmed.ai, Mishe and Copient Health while he was CEO of the Brooklyn teaching hospital, according to copies of 2022 and 2023 financial disclosures. Berger also reported a consulting agreement with Murata Vios, which sells technology for remotely monitoring patients.

“At SUNY, we expect the highest ethical conduct from senior officials, and we will always uphold that value,” SUNY spokesperson Holly Liapis said in a statement. — Maya Kaufman

HOCHUL VERSUS TEACHERS UNIONS: The state and city’s powerful teachers unions pressed Gov. Kathy Hochul to reject a GOP-backed federal tax credit program after she signaled support for the initiative.

States can voluntarily opt into the program, which lets taxpayers write off contributions to charitable organizations that offer scholarships for private school tuition and other expenses. Hochul’s office confirmed her support today, but insisted she wants to review the details “for poison pills that could harm New York’s education system.”

The teachers unions contend the program will funnel billions of tax dollars away from public schools and into private schools with no oversight.

“Vouchers — by any name — take money away from neighborhood schools and hand it to private institutions that don’t answer to the public,” New York State United Teachers President Melinda Person said in a statement. “New Yorkers have rejected this approach before, and we sincerely hope that once the full details of President Trump’s voucher scheme emerge, it will be clear state leadership should reject it again.”

Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, said his union is “vehemently opposed to this optional federal voucher program.”

Support for the program could also set up a showdown between the governor and the Democrat-led state Legislature, which is closely aligned with the teachers unions.

State Sen. John Liu, who chairs the Senate’s New York City Education Committee, said the tax credit may appear “enticing” but warned of long-term damage to states’ ability to provide public education.

“Many governors and legislatures around the country have recognized this tax credit for the Faustian bargain it is and have already opted out, and I sincerely hope that New York will opt out as well,” Liu said in a statement. — Madina Touré

CARL CLARIFIES: Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie is dialing back his Hochul criticism today after his peevish press gaggle denying there was a state budget deal.

“The governor and I had a really good conversation,” the Bronx Democrat told NY1. “My issue was never with her. I feel like I have an amazing relationship with the governor. My concern was more of the process. I do think we’re very close on the budget and expect we’ll get it done in short order.”

For weeks Heastie has decried the amount of non-fiscal policy matters in the budget negotiations. Hochul on Thursday announced a “general agreement” on the spending plan without many details filled in, including specifics for pension changes, education spending and health care. — Nick Reisman

FROM CITY HALL

BOYLAN BACKS OUT: Lindsey Boylan, an activist who became the first woman to accuse former Gov. Andrew Cuomo of sexual misconduct in 2020, is pulling the plug on her campaign for a Manhattan-based City Council seat.

Boylan already lost last month’s special election for the vacant seat to Council staffer Carl Wilson. But after her defeat, she didn’t immediately say whether she would remain on the ballot for this summer’s Democratic primary for the 3rd Council District, which spans a section of Manhattan’s West Side.

This morning, Boylan announced she will bow out from the June primary, putting Wilson on a glidepath to winning a full term.

“After much consideration, I have decided not to run in the June 23 Democratic Primary,” Boylan said in a statement. “While I will not be running in the primary, I could not be prouder of what we built together.”

Boylan’s loss was a blow to Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who endorsed her shortly before the April 28 special election. It was also a feather in the cap for Council Speaker Julie Menin, who endorsed Wilson along with other more moderate forces in the Democratic Party. — Chris Sommerfeldt 

MAKING THE PITCH: Airbnb, a company whose primary business in New York City is all but banned, is trying to get back in the game during the World Cup.

The company held an event today at a Bronx public school to celebrate mini soccer pitches it’s bankrolling at several schools across the region — projects meant to leave what the company called a “meaningful and lasting impact on local communities in New York and New Jersey.”

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and the city Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels attended the groundbreaking.

A week ago, the company was at the Jamaica YMCA announcing it would provide kids with 1,000 tickets to the World Cup.

The goodwill events come as the company’s allies are looking to reopen doors through a revived City Council bill that would make way for short-term rentals in one- and two-family homes. The company made a similar push under former Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, who tried but ultimately failed to get a previous version of the bill passed last year.

“We’re committed to helping ensure the legacy of the World Cup lasts far beyond this summer and actually benefits everyday New Yorkers, like our hosts and communities they call home in the outer boroughs — not just Midtown Manhattan hotels,” Nathan Rothman, a company spokesperson, said in a statement.

Airbnb’s appearances haven’t gone unnoticed by the company’s chief foe, the politically powerful Hotel and Gaming Trades Council, which this week launched the “GOALS Coalition” aimed at, among other things, ensuring that the anti-Airbnb restrictions are enforced during the World Cup.

Whitney Hu, a spokesperson for the coalition, said “people are tired of seeing mega-corporations use every major event as an excuse to weaken protections, exploit loopholes, and revive policies that primarily benefit corporate investors at the expense of the communities that actually live here.” — Ry Rivard

SECOND SUIT: A prominent NYPD union is suing the city’s police oversight board for the second time in two weeks.

The Police Benevolent Association filed a lawsuit Friday in state Supreme Court alleging the Civilian Complaint Review Board — which investigates cases of alleged police misconduct and recommends punishments to the NYPD commissioner — is mishandling officers’ records.

Specifically, the union alleges that the CCRB is failing to follow a state law requiring notification to any member of the force whose disciplinary records are sought via a Freedom of Information Law request.

“CCRB is so thoroughly infected with anti-police bias that it refuses to comply with even the most basic requirements of fairness and due process under the law,” PBA President Patrick Hendry said in a statement.

The city’s Law Department declined to comment and referred Playbook to the CCRB. A representative for the board countered the PBA’s assertions.

“The CCRB’s investigations are complete, thorough and impartial,” spokesperson Dakota Gardner said in a statement. “The Agency continually reviews all applicable laws and regulations regarding the public release of its records, including disciplinary histories of members of service, to ensure it is fully compliant.”

The legal volley is part of a broader effort to push back against the CCRB through the courts, according to the PBA, which has often clashed with the oversight body.

Two weeks ago, the union filed a federal lawsuit alleging the CCRB released unsubstantiated complaints against officers without redacting sensitive information. — Joe Anuta

FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL

LOYALTY: Antonio Reynoso has some thoughts on Mamdani.

The Brooklyn borough president is one of three Democrats running in a contentious primary to succeed retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez, who has endorsed him. Mamdani, meanwhile, is backing Assemblymember Claire Valdez, a fellow member of the Democratic Socialists of America.

In a wide-ranging interview with The New York Editorial Board — after Reynoso relayed that the mayor suggested he shouldn’t run for Congress — he was asked what that meant to him. Reynoso, who endorsed Mamdani in the mayoral primary, replied that Mamdani doesn’t “know” him or his “history.”

“I think I was good enough to be in citywide Spanish media for him,” Reynoso said. “I was good enough to do a commercial in all of Brooklyn for him, supporting his candidacy. I think that we were aligned because I’m a [Working Families Party] pup, I’m a kid that’s always been with the WFP. He’s seen a lot of the progressive work that I’ve done, and he knows me as Antonio, maybe that way as a politician, but he doesn’t know my history.”

He’s not bothered, though.

When asked if he thinks Mamdani is “disloyal,” he responded: “I think he is disloyal,” referring to the tension between Mamdani and Velázquez. “And I want to say this, not to me so much. He’s DSA, he’s loyal to the DSA. I respect that. I’m not going to be mad at that.”

“I think it’s what he did to Nydia more so than me,” Reynoso continued. “I think he’s doing what he’s got to do for his people, and he doesn’t need to be with me, and it doesn’t bother me one bit. Even if I endorsed him, I get it. I think Nydia was asking him to sit down and come to an agreement and saying, ‘Hey, it doesn’t need to be Antonio.’”

A Mamdani spokesperson didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Mamdani had a commanding performance in the district last year, and his endorsement is seen as a huge asset to Valdez’s candidacy. So the harsh words might not land particularly well with the Mamdani fans in the primary electorate.

City Council member Julie Won, the other Democrat vying for the seat, has also come out against Mamdani on at least one issue: Sunnyside Yard, the housing redevelopment project that Mamdani met with Trump about earlier this year. — Madison Fernandez

IN OTHER NEWS

— SLICE OF TROUBLE: New York officials are struggling to finalize Hochul’s proposed pied-à-terre tax on luxury second homes as legal hurdles and budget infighting stall the plan. (Bloomberg)

— KNOCK KNOCK: New York’s top utility regulator has launched a probe into debt-collection practices at major utilities, including PSEG Long Island and Con Edison, after reports of controversial remarks at a Florida conference. (Newsday)

— OFF THE RAILS: Five unions representing 3,500 Long Island Rail Road workers say contract talks with the MTA have stalled, accusing the agency of “surface bargaining” as a potential May 16 strike looms. (New York Daily News)

Missed this morning’s New York Playbook? We forgive you. Read it here.

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Labour has suffered heavy losses in London (Alamy)

3 min read30 min

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has warned that the Labour Party faces an “existential” threat nationwide, and described London’s results as “bitterly disappointing”.

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With results still rolling in on Friday evening, Labour has suffered a day of heavy losses across the country, losing voters to both the left and right. Labour has also lost power in Wales – where it has formed the government ever since devolved institutions were set up at the turn of the century.

Reflecting on the results, Khan said that while mid-term elections can often be difficult for the government of the day, what Labour was seeing on Friday “is different”.

“These results speak to a far-reaching disillusionment and fracturing in our politics, which cannot be downplayed, spun or dismissed.”

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The Mayor of London, whose relationship with the Labour government has reportedly become increasingly fractured, warned on Friday that the party’s election results in London were “bitterly disappointing”.

A YouGov MRP last month predicted that Labour’s control of London councils would fall from 21 to 15 at the elections, with the party losing six councils.

With results across the capital still being declared, Labour’s losses have already exceeded that prediction.

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At the time of writing, results for 23 of the 32 London councils have been declared, with Labour set to lose control of Barnet, Brent, Enfield, Ealing, Hackney, Waltham Forest, Wandsworth, Westminster and Southwark.

Khan said that the results would have a bruising effect on the capital: “Labour is only able to deliver when we win elections, whether that be general, mayoral or local. Losing control of councils in London will limit our ability to serve the public in the way we want.”

London Labour MPs have become increasingly concerned in recent months about the loss of councils in the capital, with PoliticsHome reporting on nervousness in City Hall last year about this set of elections.

The losses in London will also hit right at the heart of government, with four members of the cabinet serving as MPs in the capital, including Health Secretary Wes Streeting and Prime Minister Keir Starmer himself.

While the focus had been on the threat to Labour from Reform UK and the independent vote, the Greens have emerged as the biggest insurgent party in London.

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Khan said: “Labour has lost votes in London to a variety of different parties, but the biggest change has been Labour voters switching to the Greens.”

Speaking about the country as a whole, Khan said that many people who had voted Labour in 2024 “clearly feel angry, disappointed and let down”.

“They want a Labour government to address the cost-of-living crisis while demonstrating the core values the party was established to promote,” he continued.

But Khan said that instead, “too many of the government’s achievements have been overshadowed by basic mistakes and a failure to boldly assert our progressive values.”

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On London specifically, Khan said those in the capital “are also frustrated with the slow pace of change and are impatient to see the delivery they were promised”.

“London has been taken for granted for too long,” he continued.

“This must change. Without a change in course and an acceleration in delivery, the threat to Labour is existential. We risk a repeat in London, Wales and across England of what happened in Scotland, where we have still not recovered.”

“Labour is the only party capable of delivering the change our capital city and country needs, and the only party that can unite progressives and close the door to the darkness and division of Reform.  It’s time for us to be bold and show this to be true, before it’s too late.”

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The post Has the ‘Green wave’ turned into a trickle? appeared first on spiked.

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(Alamy)

3 min read7 min

Plaid Cymru is on course to form the next Welsh government, ending Labour’s generational rule in Wales.

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The centre-left, pro-independence party, led by Rhun ap Iowerth, has won over 35 per cent of the vote, making it the largest party in the Senedd.

Reform UK came second on just below 30 per cent of the vote, while Labour and the Conservatives both suffered dramatic falls in support.

The result on Friday means that Labour will not rule in Wales for the first time since its devolved institutions were set up at the turn of the century. One of the Labour Senedd members to lose their seat was Eluned Morgan, the current first minister.

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The results are as follows:

Plaid Cymru: 43 seats (35.4 per cent)

Reform UK: 34 seats (29.3 per cent)

Labour: 9 seats (11.1 per cent)

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Conservative: 7 seats (10.7 per cent)

Green: 2 seats (6.7 per cent)

Lib Dems: 1 (4.5 per cent)

Plaid is six seats off forming a majority in the Senedd and is expected to agree on a coalition government with Welsh Labour. Leader ap Iowerth told reporters today he was willing to “reach out” to other parties to form a government in Cardiff.

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At a press conference, the Plaid leader said Wales needed a government that represented the “change” which the country voted for.

“We could all see it. We could all sense it. Wales demanded a new beginning.

“And now a new dawn beckons. But we have not yet reached the destination. Far from it. We’re just setting out on our journey, and we set off with new leadership, with new energy and new ideas.”

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In an interview with The House magazine at the end of last year, the Plaid leader compared his party’s rise to that of New York’s left-wing mayor, Zohran Mamdani.

Morgan took responsibility for the result and did not lay the blame on Prime Minister Keir Starmer, whose position is coming under renewed pressure amid major Labour losses across the UK.

But the result in Wales is particularly tricky for Starmer, with the country having historically been a deeply-rooted heartland for Labour.

Morgan and all of her predecessors have been Labour. Even as Labour collapsed in Scotland in 2015, and then saw its historic dominance in post-industrial parts of northern England fall away nearly a decade later, its vote managed to hold up in Wales.

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The party’s founder, Keir Hardie, represented the Welsh mining town of Merthyr Tydfil, and some of its most high-profile figures, like former prime minister Jim Callaghan, have strong links with Wales.

The result represented another major electoral breakthrough for Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, which has cemented its status as the main challenger on the centre right of Welsh politics.

 

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3 min read13 min

The SNP is on course to become the largest party in Holyrood once again – but without a parliamentary majority.

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John Swinney had aimed for 65 seats or more and pinned his independence hopes on that.

But with almost all constituencies now declared and regions still to come, it appears the party can achieve minority government at best.

The SNP has won as many as 55 seats so far, winning Shetland from the Liberal Democrats for the first time.

But it has also suffered losses, with the Western Isles going to Labour, Strathkelvin and Bearsden won by the Lib Dems, and Angus Robertson losing to Lorna Slater of the Scottish Greens in Edinburgh Central.

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And while Anas Sarwar conceded that Labour had lost the election early in the day, there was some relief in Dumbarton, where deputy leader Jackie Baillie doubled her majority to around 2,000 votes.

Kaukab Stewart lost her bid for Nicola Sturgeon’s vacant Glasgow Southside seat, which went to local Green councillor Holly Bruce.

It is the first time the Scottish Greens have won constituencies, while Reform UK has so far been unable to achieve the same feat.

With some results still to come, the Lib Dems are currently the second largest party on five seats, followed by the Tories on four, Labour on three and the Greens on two.

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The SNP has continued its dominance in “Yes city” Dundee, where it held both city seats, and seen its Westminster leader Stephen Flynn win entry to the Scottish Parliament in Aberdeen Deeside and North Kincardine.

And its performance comes after almost 20 years in power, and following an election in which its record in government came under question.

Polls suggested the party was on track to become the biggest party and Swinney’s confidence was clear early in the day, when he said he was “absolutely certain the SNP is going to be the leading party coming out of this election”.

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It is the first Scottish Parliament election Swinney has fought since taking over as leader of his party in 2024. That move came just a few short weeks before the 2024 general election, in which the SNP’s formidable MP group was reduced to just nine.

Succeeding Humza Yousaf as the third SNP first minister of the last parliamentary term, Swinney promised to unify his warring party and return government focus to delivery. 

Commenting on the results as they unfolded, he said the were “a reflection of the work that we’ve undertaken to rebuild public confidence and trust in the SNP”. 

Reform UK’s Scottish leader Malcolm Offord expressed disappointment that his party had not secured a constituency seat. Offord stood in Inverclyde, which was held by the SNP’s Stuart MacMillan, who is also the Scottish Parliament piper.

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This article first appeared on Holyrood.

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A wipeout: Plaid Cymru: 31,943 Reform: 23,003 Labour: 6,495 The sitting First Minister came third…

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Reform UK has claimed yet another Tory stronghold (Alamy)

3 min read9 min

Reform’s dominant victory in Essex will likely be one of the local election results most worrying Kemi Badenoch.

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Not just because the Tories had controlled the council for 25 years. But also because the county is home to the constituencies of ten Conservative MPs, six of whom are shadow cabinet ministers – including Badenoch herself.

Former cabinet ministers James Cleverly and Priti Patel, both senior members of Badenoch’s shadow front bench, are also Essex MPs.

It was confirmed on Friday that Nigel Farage’s insurgent party won 53 of Essex County Council’s 78 seats, with the Conservatives dropping to 13 from the 52 they won in 2021.

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Five years ago, the Tories were riding high in the opinion polls, with the then prime minister, Boris Johnson, enjoying what was widely described as a coronavirus vaccine bounce.

Now, however, the Conservatives are struggling to move on from their 2024 general election loss, with Badenoch’s steadily improving ratings seemingly failing to translate into an improved party brand.

The graphic below illustrates the scale of both the Reform rise and the Tory collapse.

In the run-up to 7 May, Conservatives in areas where they are electorally vulnerable, such as Essex, told PoliticsHome they were worried that the party was being complacent about this set of local elections.

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The Tories have also lost control of Hampshire for the first time in almost 30 years, with the council now in no overall control.

Here, the party lost votes not just to Reform but to the Liberal Democrats, too, demonstrating that, like Labour, the Conservatives face electoral threats from different directions.

Farage’s party also took control of Suffolk County Council, overturning a 20-year run for the Conservatives. Reform took 41 seats on the council, with the Tories pushed down into single digits, returning just nine seats.

Speaking earlier today, Badenoch insisted that the results declared at the time showed that the Conservatives are “coming back” after their heavy defeat two years ago.

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While the Tories are bleeding votes to both Reform and the Lib Dems nationwide, and are expected to suffer more pain in Scotland and Wales on Friday night, they have reasons for optimism in London, where, at the time of writing, they have won Westminster and gained eight seats in Wandsworth to push it into no overall control.

Defending Badenoch earlier this week, a senior Conservative MP acknowledged that 7 May was “going to be very bad” for the Tories, but said “there is nothing that can be done” given the situation the party is in, namely, still in the process of rebuilding public trust after being emphatically removed from office less than two years ago.

“I see this as something we have got to live through to get to the other side,” they told PoliticsHome.

 

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(Alamy)

1 min read8 min

Welsh First Minister Eluned Morgan has lost her seat as Labour faces a historic collapse in Wales.

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It was confirmed on Friday afternoon that Labour had won no seats in her Ceredigion Penfro constituency under Wales’ proportional voting system.

Plaid Cymru, which is currently expected to form the next government in Cardiff, won 36 per cent of the vote to pick up three seats, while Reform UK came second with 26 per cent of the vote, giving the party two seats.

The Conservatives came third, winning one seat, while Labour fell sharply to fourth place.

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The Labour collapse in Wales will be seen as one of the most bruising results for Prime Minister Keir Starmer as his leadership comes under renewed pressure.

Labour has been in power in Wales since its devolved institutions were set up at the turn of the century, with every first minister in Cardiff being Labour.

Earlier today, a Labour spokesperson told the BBC that the party expects to have a “group of around 10” members in the bigger 96-member Senedd, compared with the 30 elected to a 60-seat Welsh Parliament five years ago.

 

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