1913–1939 Llanelly Borough Council elections

Llanelly Borough Council was created in 1913 when the existing Llanelly Urban District Council was granted full borough status.

1913 Llanelly Borough Council election

The first election for the newly incorporated borough of Llanelly was held on 3 November 1913. All the seats were contested with the majority of the members of the former Urban District Council being elected. Apart from the nine candidates nominated by the Labour Association - three in each ward - the election was said to have been fought on non-political and non-sectarian lines, with the majority of the aspirants standing as Independents.^[1]

Ward One

Ward One 1913
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	W.H. Samuel*	897
Independent	Joseph Roberts	865
Independent	Roland T. Thomas*	827
Independent	Gwilym R. Price*	824
Independent	David Jennings	779
Labour	John Simlett*	632
Independent	W.E. Clements	628
Independent	James Hansard	593
Labour	William Vivian	560
Independent	W.T. Davies	534
Independent	William Davies	447

Ward Two

Ward Two 1913
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	D.J. Davies*	1,048
Independent	E. Willis Jones*	1,009
Independent	Thomas Jones*	984
Independent	W.B. Jones*	939
Independent	D.R. Jones	888
Independent	T. Hay Samuel	742
Independent	Dan Williams	687
Independent	J. Thomas	674
Labour	G.H. Stacey	664
Independent	D. Davies	540
Labour	Sam Jones	530
Independent	J. Lewis Phillips	424
Labour	T.H. Evans	366

Ward Three

Ward Three 1913
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	Herbert D. Rees*	601
Independent	W.P. Rees	538
Labour	Nathan Griffiths*	444
Independent	J.W. Thomas	432
Independent	J.L. Jones	347
Labour	John Hughes	345
Independent	Owen Jones	342
Labour	Morgan Morgan*	332
Independent	W.M. Davies*	325
Independent	S.H. Bevan	295

By-elections

At the inaugural statutory meeting of the new council on Monday, 10 N0vember, presided over by the new mayor, Sir Stafford Howard,^[2] six aldermen were elected (two from each ward) resulting in by-elections for the remaining six seats on the council. D. James Davies, John Simlett and Herbert Rees were elected aldermen for six years, and Joseph Roberts, Bramwell Jones and Nathan Griffiths for three years.

The by-elections were held on 25 November, with five of the seats being won by Independent candidates.^[3]

Ward One by-election (two seats)

Ward One by-election 1913
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	W.E. Clement	800
Independent	W.T. Davies	699
Labour	William Vivian	661
Labour	P. Williams	276

Ward Two (two seats)

Ward Two by-elections 1913
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	D. Williams	622
Independent	John Thomas	599
Labour	G.H. Stacey	564
Independent	D. Davies	541
Independent	J. Lewis Phillips	293
Independent	T. Harris	163
Independent	J. Davies	125

Ward Three (two seats)

Ward Three by-elections 1913
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Morgan Morgan	400
Independent	William Davies	339
Labour	Owen Jones	322
Independent	H. Williams	297
Independent	W. Davies	285

1919 Llanelly Borough Council election

In the first post-war election, Labour candidates won four of the six seats, three of which were gains from Independent candidates.^[4] The Llanelly Mercury expressed the hope that the infusion of new blood would lead to an improvement in the govrnamce of the town.^[5]

Ward One (two seats)

Ward One 1919
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Evan Roberts	1,068
Independent	Martin R. Richards*	979
Independent	Frank J. Rees*	945
Labour	David Williams	744
Independent	John Llewellyn	405
Independent	John Marker	409
Independent	Alicia Phillips	321

Ward Two (two seats)

Ward Two 1919
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Thomas Charles	1,779
Discharged Soldiers and Sailors	Capt. J. Evans	1,491
Labour	Thomas Davies	1,267
Independent	W.T. Morris	667

Ward Three (two seats)

Ward Three 1919
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Owen Jones	873
Labour	H. Steve Davies	781
Independent	William Davies*	653
Independent	J.W. Thomas*	258

1921 Llanelly Borough Council election

Independent candidates won five of the six seats, including William Davies, who regained the seat he lost in 1919..^[6] The Labour Association was criticised for running a slate of candidates and creating costs to the ratepayers.^[7]

Ward One (two seats)

Ward One 1921
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	David Jennings	1,878
Independent	Frank J. Rees*	1,809
Labour	Mrs Elias Davies	581
Independent	T.L. Stewart	401
Independent	Llew Arthur	354

Ward Two (two seats)

Ward Two 1921
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	E. Willis Jones*	2,061
Independent	T. Hay Samuel*	1,644
Labour	Tom Harries	859
Independent	G.W. Dillon	712

Ward Three (two seats)

Ward Three 1921
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	William Davies	1,268
Labour	John Hughes*	923
Independent	Thomas Morgan	673
Independent	David John	516

1922 Llanelly Borough Council election

Only one of the three wards was contested at this election, which was overshadowed by the ongoing General Election.^[8]

Ward One (two seats)

Ward One 1922
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Evan Roberts*	Unopposed
	Independent	Martin R. Richards*	Unopposed

Ward Two (two seats)

Ward Two 1922
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Thomas Charles*	Unopposed
	Independent	J. Evans*	Unopposed

Ward Three (two seats)

Ward Three 1922
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	H. Steve Davies*	1,094
Labour	Owen Jones*	1,021
Independent	David Harries	843

1923 Llanelly Borough Council election

The Labour Party launched a campaign to improve their position on the authority and this led to a more politiciced campoagn than in previous years. Aldermen also stood down but the death of D. James Davies, former owner of the South Wales Press, left one vacancy.^[9] However, only two of the six Labour candidates were elected.^[10]

Ward One (two seats)

Ward One 1923
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	Joseph Roberts**	1,634
Independent	W.E. Clement*	1,362
Labour	Tom Hughes	878
Independent	R.J. Edmunds	800
Labour	T.D. Phillips	623

Ward Two (two seats)

Ward Two 1923
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	W.T. Morris	2,021
Labour	James Davies*	1,709
Labour	Elias Davies*	1,637

Ward Three (two seats)

Ward Three 1923
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	W. Powell Rees*	1,803
Labour	Morgan Morgan	901
Labour	Stanley Davies	825

1924 Llanelly Borough Council election

The contest, held at the same time as a General Election campaign, resulted in Labour losing one seat.^[11]

Ward One (two seats)

Ward One 1924
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	Frank J. Rees*	2,223
Independent	David Jennings*	1,919
Labour	R. Phillips	860

Ward Two (two seats)

Ward Two 1924
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	T. Hay Samuel*	1,909
Labour	Elias Davies*	1,739
Labour	Ben Griffiths	1,275

Ward Three (two seats)

Ward Three 1924
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	William Davies*	1,247
Independent	Theo Jenkins	973
Labour	John Hughes*	873
Labour	J.J. Winter	552

1925 Llanelly Borough Council election

All three wards wre contested and local press coverage focused on the more radical elements within the Labour campaign with Enoch Collins being described as an avowed Communist.^[12] Th outcome was a net loss of one Labour seat.^[13] While Labour held both setas in Ward Three the more moderate Tom Charles was ousted in Ward Two. Press attention locally focused on the defeat of Neft and Collins in Ward One while it was claimed that Charles would have held his seat had he stood as an Independent.

Ward One (two seats)

Ward One 1925
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	Daniel Roberts*	2,277
Independent	Martin R. Richards*	2,120
Labour	R. Neft	603
Labour	Enoch Collins	532

Ward Two (two seats)

Ward Two 1925
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	Jack Evans*	1,987
Independent	W.E. Davies	1,823
Labour	Thomas Charles*	1,547
Labour	Ben Griffiths	1,185

Ward Three (two seats)

Ward Three 1925
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	H. Steve Davies*	1,209
Labour	Owen Jones*	1,146
Independent	Alban Evans	663

1926 Llanelly Borough Council election

All three wards were keenly contested and The Labour Party launched a campaign to improve their position on the authority and this led to a more politiciced campoagn than in previous years. Aldermen also stood down, including the rey=tiring mayour, J.L. Jones.^[14] Much to the surprise of the local press, Labour won four of the six seats with two retiring aldermen and W.T. Morris, a sitting county councillor, among those defeated. J.L. Jones, first elected in 1910, finished at the foot of the poll. There was criticism of Indepdnents for fielding too many candidates and allowing Labour candidates to be elected on a split vote.^[15] The practice of expecting retiring aldermen to seek election in competition with retiring councillors was also questioned.

Ward One (two seats)

Ward One 1926
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	J.H. Williams*	1,480
Labour	John Hughes	1,413
Independent	R.P. Thomas**	1,311
Independent	W.E. Clement*	1,045

Ward Two (two seats)

Ward Two 1926
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Tom Charles	2,085
Independent	Jack Auckland	1,437
Independent	W.H. Charles	1,338
Independent	W.T. Morris*	981

Ward Three (two seats)

Ward Three 1926
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Morgan Morgan	1,094
Labour	Stanley Davies*	1,013
Independent	W.J. Davies	687
Independent	Tom Morgan	600
Independent	J.L. Jones**	592

By-elections

At the statutory meeting on 9 November, David Jennings (Ind), T. Hay Samuel (Ind) and Morgan Morgan (Lab) were elected aldermen, causing by-elections in each ward. ^[16] The Independents won two of these but the ex-mayor was again defated in Ward Three.^[17]

Ward 1 by-election (one seat)

Ward 1 by-election 1926
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	R.P. Thomas
	Labour	W.L. Rees

Ward 2 by-election (one seat)

Ward 2 by-election 1926
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	W.H. Charles
	Labour	D. James Davies
	Independent	T. Griffiths

Ward 3 by-election (one seat)

Ward 3 by-election 1926
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	H.W. Bowen	976
	Independent	J.L. Jones	581

References

^ "Town Council Elections". Welshman. 7 November 1913. p. 7. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
^ "A Red Letter Day. Llanelli's First Corporation Meets for the First Time". Llanelly Star. 15 November 1913. p. 3. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
^ "Council Elections. Results of Contests in South Wales". Western Mail. 25 November 1913. p. 6. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
^ "Election Results". Llanelly Mercury. 6 November 1919.
^ "Editorial". Llanelly Mercury. 6 November 1919.
^ "Results". Llanelly Mercury. 3 November 1921.
^ "Editorial". Llanelly Mercury. 27 October 1921.
^ "Borough Election Results". Llanelly Mercury. 9 November 1922.
^ "Municipal Elections". Llanelly Mercury. 11 October 1923.
^ "Municipal Elections". Llanelly Mercury. 8 November 1923.
^ "Municipal Elections". Llanelly Mercury. 6 November 1924.
^ "Borough Council Elections". Llanelly Star. 24 October 1925. p. 3 November 1922. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
^ "Election Results". Western Mail. 3 November 1925. p. 8. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
^ "Monday's Election. Keen Contest in All Wards". Llanelly Star. 30 October 1926. p. 1. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
^ "Election Afterthoughts. Lessons for the Anti-Socialists". Llanelly Star. 6 November 1926. p. 3. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
^ "Sentinel's Gossip". Llanelly Star. 13 November 1926. p. 3. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
^ "The Bye-Elections. Ex-Mayor's Second Defeat". Llanelly Star. 4 December 1926. p. 7. Retrieved 25 September 2024.

[W_7-11-13_results-1] "Town Council Elections". Welshman. 7 November 1913. p. 7. Retrieved 1 October 2024.

[LS_15-11-13_inaugural_meeting-2] "A Red Letter Day. Llanelli's First Corporation Meets for the First Time". Llanelly Star. 15 November 1913. p. 3. Retrieved 2 October 2024.

[WM_25-1--13_results-3] "Council Elections. Results of Contests in South Wales". Western Mail. 25 November 1913. p. 6. Retrieved 2 October 2024.

[LM_6-11-19_edit-4] "Election Results". Llanelly Mercury. 6 November 1919.

[LM_6-11-19_results-5] "Editorial". Llanelly Mercury. 6 November 1919.

[LM_3-11-21-6] "Results". Llanelly Mercury. 3 November 1921.

[LM_27-10-21_edit-7] "Editorial". Llanelly Mercury. 27 October 1921.

[LM_9-11-22-8] "Borough Election Results". Llanelly Mercury. 9 November 1922.

[LM_11-10-23-9] "Municipal Elections". Llanelly Mercury. 11 October 1923.

[LM_8-11-23-10] "Municipal Elections". Llanelly Mercury. 8 November 1923.

[LM_6-11-24-11] "Municipal Elections". Llanelly Mercury. 6 November 1924.

[LS_25-10-25-12] "Borough Council Elections". Llanelly Star. 24 October 1925. p. 3 November 1922. Retrieved 20 September 2024.

[WM_res_3-11-25-13] "Election Results". Western Mail. 3 November 1925. p. 8. Retrieved 20 September 2024.

[LS_30-10-26-14] "Monday's Election. Keen Contest in All Wards". Llanelly Star. 30 October 1926. p. 1. Retrieved 24 September 2024.

[LS_6-11-26-15] "Election Afterthoughts. Lessons for the Anti-Socialists". Llanelly Star. 6 November 1926. p. 3. Retrieved 24 September 2024.

[LS_13-11-26-16] "Sentinel's Gossip". Llanelly Star. 13 November 1926. p. 3. Retrieved 24 September 2024.

[LS_4-12-26-17] "The Bye-Elections. Ex-Mayor's Second Defeat". Llanelly Star. 4 December 1926. p. 7. Retrieved 25 September 2024.

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