Bigyn is an

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected t ...

, representing part of the

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

Llanelli ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire (; or informally ') is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. It is a three-member ward for the purposes of elections to

Carmarthenshire County Council Carmarthenshire County Council ( or ''Cyngor Sir Gaerfyrddin'') is the local authority for the county of Carmarthenshire, Wales. It provides a range of services including education, planning, transport, social services and public safety. The co ...

, with the number of councillors being increased from two to three for the elections held in May 2022.

Profile

In 2014, the Bigyn electoral ward had an electorate of 4,931. The total population was 6,750, of whom 83% were born in Wales. 23.0% of the population were able to speak Welsh.

Current Representation

The Bigyn Ward is a three-member ward for the purposes of Carmarthenshire County Council elections. Since 2022 it has been represented by

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

Michael Cranham and Labour Party councillors Janet Williams and Philip Warlow.

Carmarthen County Council elections

The first election to the new unitary

took place in

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

. Bigyn Ward had three seats, all of which were won by the Labour Party. Martin Morris, the sitting member for the ward on

Dyfed County Council Dyfed County Council () was the county council of the county of Dyfed in south west Wales. It operated between 1974 and 1996. The county council was based at County Hall, Carmarthen. History Dyfed County Council was created on 1 April 1974 und ...

, was elected alongside Sandra Cooke and David Prothero, a former county councillor. Three sitting members of

Llanelli Borough Council The Borough of Llanelli was one of six local government districts of the county of Dyfed, Wales from 1974 to 1996. History The district was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, covering the area of four former districts f ...

were unsuccessful. At the

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

, the boundaries remained unchanged but the number of seats were reduced from three to two. Martin Morros contested the Tyisha Ward, where he was successful, allowing his two colleagues to be returned for Bigyn. Labour again held both seats in

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

. In

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, Labour fared badly in the Llanelli area as a whole and lost both seats in Bigyn to

Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; , ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, and often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left, Welsh nationalist list of political parties in Wales, political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from th ...

. In

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, Labour, having held all seats in Bigyn from 1995 until 2008, regained both on a low turnout. Eryl Morgan was previously county councillor for Hengoed. In May 2022, Independent Michael Cranham and Labour's Janet Williams came first and second. The third place vote was tied, on 596 votes, between the other two Labour candidates Philip Warlow and David Darkin. The winner was decided by the toss of a coin, with Warlow guessing correctly.

Earlier History

County Council Elections

The long-standing ward boundaries in

were redrawn in the 1980s to create five new wards, namely Bigyn, Elli, Glanymor, Lliedi and Tyisha. Each of these wards returned a member to

in 1989 and 1993. When the current

was formed in 1995, the Bigyn Wards remained unchanged and initially returned three members to the new authority. This was reduced to two members in 1999.

District Council Elections

From 1987, Bigyn formed an electoral ward for the purposes of elections to

. Bigyn returned three members.

External links

References

{{coord missing, Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire electoral wards Llanelli