There are a number of political parties registered to the Electoral Commission in Wales. Some of these parties have elected representation in the

Senedd The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees certain taxes and scrutinises the Welsh Gove ...

(Welsh Parliament; cy, Senedd Cymru) and/or in Westminster (UK Parliament) and some have elected representation in one or more of the 22

Welsh local authorities Since 1 April 1996, Wales has been divided into 22 single-tier principal areas ( cy, Awdurdodau unedol), styled as counties or county boroughs ( or ) for local government purposes. The elected councils of these areas are responsible for the pr ...

, while others have entirely no elected representation. This Wikipedia page lists all of the above and some relevant Welsh political parties that formerly existed but have since disbanded. The largest political parties typically reside in either the House of Commons or the Senedd, the current largest party in Wales is Welsh Labour, followed closely by the

Welsh Conservatives The Welsh Conservatives ( cy, Ceidwadwyr Cymreig) is the branch of the United Kingdom Conservative Party that operates in Wales. At Westminster elections, it is the second most popular political party in Wales, having obtained the second-large ...

and Plaid Cymru.

House of Commons/Senedd

House of Commons

The Parliament of the United Kingdom is a

legislative body A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known as p ...

in the United Kingdom and creates

primary legislation Primary legislation and secondary legislation (the latter also called delegated legislation or subordinate legislation) are two forms of law, created respectively by the legislature, legislative and executive (government), executive branches of ...

. There are two chambers within the Parliament of the United Kingdom: the House of Commons (the elected chamber) and the House of Lords. This article focuses on the House of Commons. Three parties have elected representatives in that house (MPs): Welsh Labour,

and Plaid Cymru. The constituencies are due to change for the 2024 general election.

Senedd

The

was formed under the Government of Wales Act 1998, by the Labour government, following a referendum in 1997. It was given greater powers under the

2011 Welsh devolution referendum The Referendum on the law-making powers of the National Assembly for Wales was a non-binding referendum held in Wales on 3 March 2011 on whether the Senedd, National Assembly for Wales should have full law-making powers in the twenty subject are ...

. In 2021, four parties have elected representatives in the

: Welsh Labour,

, Plaid Cymru and Welsh Liberal Democrats.

House of Commons/Senedd parties

Local government

Several parties in Wales have no national representation, but have elected representation at the local government level.

County councils

Community and town councils

Council control

Parties with no elected representation

Notable registered parties

Defunct parties

South Wales Socialist Society The South Wales Socialist Society was a federation of communist groups in Wales, with many of its members being coal miners. It was a founder constituent of the Communist Party of Great Britain. It was formed as the Rhondda Socialist Society in ...

(1911–1920) - amalgamated with the

Communist Party of Great Britain The Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) was the largest communist organisation in Britain and was founded in 1920 through a merger of several smaller Marxist groups. Many miners joined the CPGB in the 1926 general strike. In 1930, the CPG ...

in the 1920s. *

Communist Party of South Wales and the West of England The Communist Party of South Wales and the West of England was a political party in Britain, formed in September 1920. The group was formed by a minority within the South Wales Socialist Society, that did not support merging into the Communist Part ...

(1920) - set up by those who opposed amalgamation with the Communist Party of Great Britain *

Welsh Republican Movement The Welsh Republican Movement ( cy, Mudiad Gweriniaethol Cymru) was a Welsh nationalist political party. It was founded in 1949 as a split from Plaid Cymru. The group, some of whom had previously been members of the Labour Party aimed to build ...

(1949–1966) - most members either returned to Plaid Cymru or joined the Labour Party * Welsh Socialist Republican Movement (1979–1986) - succeeded as a political party in 1986 by Cymru Goch, however it still exists as a publication * Cymru Goch (1986–2003) - evolved into Forward Wales. *

Democratic Alliance of Wales Denbighshire County Council is the unitary local authority for the county of Denbighshire, one of the principal areas of Wales. The council is based at County Hall in Ruthin. Elections take place every five years. The last election was on ...

(1999–2008) * John Marek Independent Party (2003) - short lived party which became Forward Wales. * Forward Wales (2003–2010) *

Blaenau Gwent People's Voice Group The Blaenau Gwent People's Voice Group was a political party based in the Blaenau Gwent area of Wales. The party was formed in the aftermath of the election to the House of Commons of Peter Law as an independent Member of Parliament, beating t ...

(2005–2010) - party set-up in Blaenau Gwent. Its leader, Dai Davies, retired from politics and the party disbanded. *Putting Llanelli First (2011–2016)People First - Gwerin Gyntaf (De-registered 03/11/16)
The Electoral Commission. Retrieved 2018-09-23. - Siân Caiach (now a councillor for Gwlad) ran for the party in the Welsh Assembly seat of Llanelli in 2011 and 2016. *

Respect - The Unity Coalition The Respect Party was a left-wing to far-left, socialist political party active in the United Kingdom between 2004 and 2016. At the height of its success in 2007, the party had one Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons and nineteen ...

(2004–2016) - a party established by

Salma Yaqoob Salma Yaqoob (formally Jacob) (born 15 August 1971) is a British political activist and psychotherapist who served as the Leader of the Respect Party from 2005 until 2012, representing the party on Birmingham City Council. She led the Birming ...

and George Monbiot and built out of the Stop the War Coalition, its most notable candidate was

George Galloway George Galloway (born 16 August 1954) is a British politician, broadcaster, and writer who is currently leader of the Workers Party of Britain, serving since 2019. Between 1987 and 2010, and then between 2012 and 2015, Galloway was a Member o ...

* Welsh Socialist Alliance (1999–2016) an alliance between the Socialist Party and Cymru Goch and some independents, which fell apart when the Socialist Party left the grouping

Notes

References

{{List of political parties in Europe Politics of Wales Wales

Political parties A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or pol ...