1952 Carmarthenshire County Council election

An election to the Carmarthenshire County Council was held in April 1952.^[1] It was preceded by the 1949 election and followed, by the 1955 election.

Overview of the result

After capturing control of the Council for the first time in 1949, Labour strengthened their hold by gaining an additional six seats in the Llanelli area. These included the two new wards created after boundary changes and the two wards in Llanelli town lost in by-elections in 1949. This counterbalanced the loss of Llangeler where Labour did not field a candidate. This was augmented by taking seven of the nine vacancies on the aldermanic bench.^[2]

Boundary changes

Two additional seats were created, at Burry Port and Felinfoel.

Retiring aldermen

The aldermen who retired at the election were ...

Retiring Labour councillors Haydn Lewis and Evan Bevan stood down in Ammanford and Llandybie respectively to allow Aldermen Frank Davies, and D.B. Lewis to be returned unopposed. Likewise, H.H. Harries and J.H. Davies stood down in Llandissilio and Llansteffan in favour of Edward James and T.Ll. Harries. Aldermen John Phillips (Cwmamman) and J.D. Rees (St Clears) withdrew at the last moment.^[3]

Unopposed returns

34 members were returned unopposed, which included both rural and urban seats.^[3]

Contested elections

25 seats were contested, including a number of instances where rival Independents fought each other. As in 1949, Independents sought to fight elections in Llanelli as a group, but had little success. Following the elections, Labour held all nine wards in Llanelli town for the first time.

A number of retiring aldermen stood as candidates and were returned unopposed. In Carmarthen, Alderman William Edwards, a member of the Council since 1928, stood in a town ward rather than in Llangunnor which he represented as a councilor until 1946. Edwards was defeated by the retiring Labour member.

Summary of results

This section summarises the detailed results which are noted in the following sections.

This table summarises the result of the elections in all wards. 53 councillors were elected.

Carmarthesnhire County Council 1952: elected members
Party		Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
	Labour
	Plaid Cymru
	Independent

Carmarthenshire County Council 1952 : following election of new aldermen
Party		Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
	Labour
	Plaid Cymru
	Independent

Carmarthenshire County Council 1952 : following election of new aldermen and by-elections
Party		Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
	Labour
	Plaid Cymru
	Independent

Ward results

Abergwili

Abergwili 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	William John Phillips	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Ammanford No.1

Ammanford No.1 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Frank Davies**	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Ammanford No.2

Ammanford No.2 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Harries*	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Berwick

Berwick 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	William Isaac Daniel*	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Burry Port East

Boundary Change

Burry Port East 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Labor Dennis	921
Independent	Dr W.D. Williams	471
Labour win (new seat)

Burry Port West

Boundary Change

Burry Port West 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Edward Lewis*	901
Independent	Gwyn Thomas	273
Labour win (new seat)

Caio

Caio 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Thomas Davies*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Carmarthen Division 1

Carmarthen Division 1 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	George V. Davies*	1,240
Independent	William Edwards**	1,022
Labour hold		Swing

Carmarthen Division 2

Carmarthen Division 2 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	J.O. Morgans*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Carmarthen Division 3

Carmarthen Division 3 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	J. Verdi Jenkins*	931
Labour	Ellis J. Powell	708
Independent hold		Swing

Cenarth

Cenarth 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	D.E. James Jones*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Cilycwm

Cilycwm 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	D.I. Lewis	448
Independent	J.A. Owen*	290
Independent hold		Swing

Conwil

Conwil 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	W.A. Phillips*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Cwmamman

Cwmamman 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	David Davies*	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Felinfoel

Boundary Change

Felinfoel 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Joseph Howells**	unopposed
	Labour win (new seat)

Hengoed

Boundary Change

Hengoed 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	David John Stone*	864
Independent	J.G. Thomas	358
Labour win (new seat)

Kidwelly

Kidwelly 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	J.H. Williams*	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Laugharne

Laugharne 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	W.G. John	797
Independent	H.R. Lewis	582
Independent hold		Swing

Llanarthney

Llanarthney 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	W. Edgar Lewis*	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Llanboidy

Llanboidy 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	William Joshua Phillips*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Llandebie North

Llandebie North 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Gwilym R. Thomas*	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Llandebie South

Llandebie South 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	D.B. Lewis**	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Llandilo Rural

Llandilo Rural 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	David Marlais Humphreys	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Llandilo Urban

Llandilo Urban 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	James Morgan Davies*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Llandovery

Llandovery 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	William Davies	565
Independent	Anthony H. Gower*	425
Independent	James James	157
Independent hold		Swing

Llandyssilio

Llandyssilio 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Edward James**	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Llanedy

Llanedy 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Gwyn Howells*	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Llanegwad

Llanegwad 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Griffith Evans*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Llanelly Division 1

Llanelly Division 1 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Rev David Penry Jones*	1,064
Independent	W.G. Edmunds	1,041
Labour hold		Swing

Llanelly Division 2

Llanelly Division 2 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Dr H.D. Llewellyn	1,117
Independent	John Zammit*	1,070
Labour gain from Independent		Swing

Llanelly Division 3

Llanelly Division 3 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Labour	Mrs Claudia R. Rees*	696
	Independent	Edith A. Francis	283
Majority
	Labour hold		Swing

Llanelly Division 4

Llanelly Division 4 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Labour	Mrs Charlotte Hopkins*	1,306
	Independent	Thomas B.J. Perks	685
Majority
	Labour hold		Swing

Llanelly Division 5

Llanelly Division 5 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Labour	Sidney Lewis	532
	Independent	Frederick Howells*	500
Majority
	Labour gain from Independent		Swing

Llanelly Division 6

Llanelly Division 6 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	William J. Davies*	859
Independent	William Hughes	93
Labour hold		Swing

Llanelly Division 7

Llanelly Division 7 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	D.J. Williams	1,387
Independent	Eleanor Thomas*	651
Labour gain from Independent		Swing

Llanelly Division 8

Llanelly Division 8 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	George M. McConkey	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Llanelly Division 9

Llanelly Division 9 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	S.I. Thomas	1,150
Independent	A.H. Olive*	865
Labour gain from Independent		Swing

Llanfihangel Aberbythick

Llanfihangel Aberbythick 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	T.J. Williams*	766
Labour	D.G. Williams	446
Independent hold		Swing

Llanfihangel-ar-Arth

Llanfihangel-ar-Arth 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	John Davies*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Llangadog

Llangadog 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Plaid Cymru	Gwynfor Richard Evans	618
Independent	William Jones	486
Plaid Cymru hold		Swing

Llangeler

Llangeler 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	John Evans	unopposed
	Independent gain from Labour		Swing

Llangendeirne

Llangendeirne 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rev R.G. James*	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Llangennech

Llangennech 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Thomas Bowen*	959
Plaid Cymru	Trefor Beasley	289
Labour hold		Swing

Llangunnor

Llangunnor 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	John Dobson Phelps	626
Independent	William Parry Thomas*	557
Independent hold		Swing

Llanon

Llanon 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Sidney Jones*	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Llansawel

Llansawel 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Independent	Daniel Williams*	312
Independent	John Morgan	295
Independent hold		Swing

Llanstephan

Llanstephan 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	T.Ll. Haries*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Llanybyther

Llanybyther 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Benjamin Edward Davies*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Myddfai

Myddfai 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Morgan Lewis Jones*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Pembrey

Pembrey 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Simon John Elwyn Samuel*	1,180
Independent	Evelyn M. Thomas	503
Labour hold		Swing

Pontyberem

Pontyberem 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Williams*	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Quarter Bach

Quarter Bach 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Josiah Jones*	1,674
Independent	Owen A. Jenkins	658
Labour hold		Swing

Rhydcymmerai

Rhydcymmerai 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	David Thomas*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

St Clears

St Clears 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	T.E. Williams*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

St Ishmaels

St Ishmaels 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Trevor Rhys Morris*	815
Independent	M.T. Evans	418
Independent	M. Jones	240
Labour hold		Swing

Trelech

Trelech 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Simon Owen Thomas*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Trimsaran

Trimsaran 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Brinley Jenkins*	718
Independent	William Harries	288
Independent	C. Phillips	206
Labour hold		Swing

Westfa

Westfa 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	W.J.F. Thomas	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Whitland

Whitland 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	William Hughes Mathias*	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Election of aldermen

In addition to the 59 councillors the council consisted of 19 county aldermen. Aldermen were elected by the council, and served a six-year term. Following the elections, seven of the nine aldermanic vacancies were taken by Labour. The leader of the Labour group, Douglas Hughes, justified this by stating that the Independents had behaved in a similar fashion over many years.^[2]

Joseph Howells, Labour
D.B. Lewis, Labour
Frank Davies, Labour
John Harries, Labour
Edgar Lewis, Labour
D.J. Stone, Labour
Gwilym R. Thomas, Labour
Edward James, Independent
T.Ll. Harries, Independent

By-elections

Following the selection of aldermen the following by-elections were held. Four members of the previous authority who had stood down in favour of retiring aldermen were now returned unopposed.^[4] The two contested elections included a strong showing by Plaid Cymru in Ammanford.^[5]

Ammanford No.1 by-election

Ammanford No.1 by-election 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Haydn Lewis*	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Ammanford No.2 by-election

Ammanford No.2 by-election 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Thomas Elias Evans	663
Plaid Cymru	David Samuel Gwynfor Evans	558
Labour hold		Swing

Felinfoel by-election

Felinfoel by-election 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Arthur Cledwyn Francis	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Hengoed by-election

Hengoed by-election 1952
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Edgar S. Samuel	497
Independent Labour	Gwilym Thomas	344
Labour hold		Swing

Llanarthney by-election

Llanarthney by-election 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	D.M. Davies	unopposed
	Labour hold		Swing

Llandybie North by-election

Llandybie North by-election 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Evan Bevan*
	Labour hold		Swing

Llandybie South by-election

Llandybie South by-election 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	William Morris
	Labour hold		Swing

Llandyssilio by-election

Llandyssilio by-election 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	H.H. Harries	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Llanstephan by-election

Llanstephan by-election 1952
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	J.H. Davies	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

References

^ "County Council Elections". Carmarthen Journal. 11 April 1952.
^ ^a ^b "New County Aldermen". Carmarthen Journal. 25 April 1952.
^ ^a ^b "County Council Elections". Carmarthen Journal. 28 March 1952.
^ "County Council by-elections". Carmarthen Journal. 16 May 1955.
^ "County Council by-elections". Carmarthen Journal. 6 June 1955.

[CJ_11-4-52_CarmsRes-1] "County Council Elections". Carmarthen Journal. 11 April 1952.

[CJ_25-4-52_CarmsAldermen-2] "New County Aldermen". Carmarthen Journal. 25 April 1952.

[CJ_28-3-52_CarmsNoms-3] "County Council Elections". Carmarthen Journal. 28 March 1952.

[CJ_16-5-55_by-els-4] "County Council by-elections". Carmarthen Journal. 16 May 1955.

[CJ_6-g-55_by-els-5] "County Council by-elections". Carmarthen Journal. 6 June 1955.

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