"The byelection was a golden opportunity for Nigel Farage's party. Reform poured money and resources into its chance to break off a piece of the Labour heartland and boost its credibility by winning a first seat in the Senedd. Instead, Caerphilly became Plaid Cymru territory; a story that the latest polling suggests could be repeated across the country in May's Senedd elections."
"The night after Plaid Cymru decisively beat Reform UK in the Caerphilly byelection last autumn, spraypaint reading Now u can fuck off home appeared on the shutters of the rightwing party's offices on Cardiff Street. It was quickly cleaned off, but stickers bearing Welsh nationalist and anti-fascist slogans have popped up in its place, either scratched off or covered with duct tape. Reform is still there: the lights are on, and a shop owner next door said people go in and out every day,"
"Everyone was shocked by the scale of it though. We spent 50% less than Labour and Reform did, and brought home more of the vote than the other two parties put together. I've been in politics long enough to see some stunning upsets and twists in my time, but this feels different."
Plaid Cymru won the Caerphilly byelection decisively, overturning Reform UK's intensive campaign and finishing well ahead of Labour. Reform UK invested money and resources in an attempt to win a first Senedd seat, but Plaid secured a strong local victory with lower spending. Graffiti and stickers appeared on the local Reform office after the result, and the office remains open despite vandalism and silence at the door. Caerphilly's result saw Plaid take 47.4% to Reform's 36% and Labour fall to 11%, raising the prospect of similar shifts across Wales in the May Senedd elections.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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