The community of Llwydcoed,

Rhondda Cynon Taf Rhondda Cynon Taf (; RCT; also spelt as Rhondda Cynon Taff) is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It consists of five valleys: the Rhondda Fawr, Rhondda Fach, Cynon, Taff (Welsh: ''Taf'') and Ely valleys, plus a number of towns and vill ...

was, for much of the twentieth century, and

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

for the purposes of electing members to

Glamorgan County Council Glamorgan County Council was established in 1889 together with the administrative county of Glamorganshire under the Local Government Act 1888. The first elections to the council were held in January 1889. The council was abolished under the Local ...

and the

Aberdare Urban District Council Aberdare Urban District Council was a local authority in Aberdare, Wales. History It was created in 1894 as a result of the 1894 Local Government of England and Wales Act and the 1894 Aberdare Urban District Council election saw the election of ...

. Llwydcoed is no longer an electoral ward but forms part of

Aberdare West/Llwydcoed Aberdare ( ; cy, Aberdâr) is a town in the Cynon Valley area of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, at the confluence of the Rivers Dare (Dâr) and Cynon. Aberdare has a population of 39,550 (mid-2017 estimate). Aberdare is south-west of Merthyr Tyd ...

for the purposes of

unitary authority elections Llwydcoed first became an electoral ward in the late nineteenth century with the formation of

. Llwydcoed was also an electoral ward of the

from its formation in 1894.

History 1889–1914

The first representative was the venerable Rees Hopkin Rhys who was succeeded by the Liberal industrialist Rees Llewellyn

Glamorgan County Council

1889 Events January–March * January 1 ** The total solar eclipse of January 1, 1889 is seen over parts of California and Nevada. ** Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka experiences a vision, leading to the start of the Ghost Dance movement in the ...

, Rees Hopkin Rhys was elected as member for Llwydcoed, defeating

Griffith George Griffith George (1847–1910) was a Liberal politician, businessman and a prominent figure in the cultural and religious of Aberdare and Glamorgan, Wales. George was born in Llangoedmor, near Cardigan, but moved at a young age to Pontseli, near ...

. Rhys was re-elected unopposed in

1892 Events January–March * January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States. * February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado. * February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies for ...

and although described as a Liberal this was unlikely. Boundary changes in 1895 saw Rhys, now 75 years of age opposed by Richard Morgan, whose Hirwaun seat had been abolished. Rhys was again elected unopposed in 1898 Rhys died in 1899 and was succeeded by Rees Llewellyn. In 1901, Llewellyn was re-elected. He was again re-elected in 1904. Llewellyn was again re-elected unopposed in 1907 Despite occasional challenges by the Labour Party at district council level (see below), labour did not challenge for the county seat in this period.

Aberdare Urban District Council

Llwydcoed was also an electoral ward of the

from its formation in 1894. In 1899, Owen Harries was again returned unopposed. In

1900 As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15), 2 ...

, two members were elected owing to the vacant seat following the death of Rees Hopkin Rhys. John William Evans, whip had failed to be elected at the initial election in 1894 but who subsequently became a county councillor and a county alderman, was seventeen votes ahead of sitting councillor Rees Llewellyn. In 1901, Llewellyn was re-elected by a large majority. In 1902,

Owen Harris Owen Harris (1837 – January 1905) was a Liberal politician and municipal leader in Aberdare, South Wales. Early life Harris was born in Llanddeusant, Carmarthenshire, but as a young man migrated to Ystalyfera in the Swansea Valley and later ...

was once again returned unopposed. In 1903, J.W. Evans was re-elected unopposed. In 1904 an additional seat was created, allowing T. Walter Williams to be returned alongside Rees Llewellyn. In 1905, following the death of

, his son, Morgan J. Harris, was elected in his place after defeating a Labour candidate. In 1906, John William Evans stood down due to ill health and died shortly afterwards. He was succeeded by J.O. George who defeated a Labour candidate. 1907 saw the return of the sitting members by a comfortable majority.

Cynon Valley Borough Council

Between 1973 and 1996 Llwydcoed was a ward for Cynon Valley Borough Council. The ward elected six borough councillors, reducing to one councillor from 1986.

1995–

Llwydcoed is no longer an electoral ward but forms part of

for the purposes of

unitary authority elections. Since 1995 Aberdare West/Llwydcoed has been represented by

Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. Plaid wa ...

and

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

councillors.Rhondda Cyon Taff County Borough Council Election Results 1995-2012
The Election Centre (Plymouth University). Retrieved 27 October 2018.

References

{{reflist Glamorgan electoral wards Former wards of Wales