Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour party has suffered a seismic by-election defeat in a traditional Welsh stronghold, losing Caerphilly to the nationalist party Plaid Cymru.
The 3,848-vote majority secured by Plaid Cymru’s Lindsay Whittle in the Welsh Senedd assembly seat deals a blow to Starmer’s leadership, and comes ahead of elections in May that could end more than a quarter century of Labour leadership in Wales.
“We want a better deal for every corner of Wales,” Whittle said in his victory speech early Friday. “The big parties need to sit up and take notice. Wales, we are at the dawn of new leadership; we are at the dawn of a new beginning.”