“Firm preference” that Welsh Parliament elections go ahead next year amid concerns pandemic could delay them

The First Minister has said it is his hope that next year’s planned Senedd Cymru/Welsh Parliament elections will go ahead as planned next spring.

Voters across Wales are due to head to the polls in May 2021.

However speaking to ITV Wales last month, Health Minister Vaughan Gething said the coronavirus pandemic had caused a great deal of uncertainty and that the elections were at risk of not taking place. However, he added that we could be in a position in 12 months time when a vaccine or antiviral treatment is available.

Next year’s scheduled election will also be the first that 16 and 17 year old in Wales will be able to vote.

Yesterday the First Minister was asked if he agreed with Mr Gething’s comments when other countries have held elections during the pandemic. In Wales the Police and Crime Commissioner election has already been postponed until 2021.

Mr Drakeford said it it was his ambition and preference for the Senedd elections to go ahead as planned next year.

He said: “I think Vaughan Gething was pointing at – and he was right to point to it – was that while we have passed the first peak of coronavirus here in Wales, there may be other peaks to come.

“Elections by their nature require at the moment people to go together to polling stations, to be close to one another, it requires people to be sitting there all day long handing out ballot papers, and social distancing and making sure the coronavirus wasn’t being accelerated by that is something we’ve got to think seriously and carefully about.

“So as I say my firm preference is for there to be elections next year.

“If we were at another peak of coronavirus and the practical conduct, the way we have to behave for an election, added to the risk for people we’d have to think about very seriously.

“And as health minister, that was exactly the point that Vaughan was making.”