# Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney (UK Parliament constituency)

Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney (Welsh: Merthyr Tudful a Rhymni) was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. It was established for the 1983 general election.
The constituency was abolished as part of the 2023 periodic review of Westminster constituencies and under the June 2023 final recommendations of the Boundary Commission for Wales for the 2024 general election. Its wards were split between Blaenau Gwent and Rhymney, and Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare.

## Boundaries

1983–1997: The Borough of Merthyr Tydfil, and the District of Rhymney Valley wards Nos. 5 and 14 to 20.
1997–2010: The County Borough of Merthyr Tydfil, and the Caerphilly County Borough wards of Abertysswg, Darren Valley, Moriah, New Tredegar, Pontlottyn, Tir-Phil, and Twyn Carno.
2010–2024: The Merthyr Tydfil County Borough electoral divisions of Bedlinog, Cyfarthfa, Dowlais, Gurnos, Merthyr Vale, Park, Penydarren, Plymouth, Town, Treharris, and Vaynor, and the Caerphilly County Borough electoral divisions of Darran Valley, Moriah, New Tredegar, Pontlottyn, and Twyn Carno.
As its name suggests, the main towns were Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney. Aberfan was also located in the constituency. The seat was bordered by the constituencies of Blaenau Gwent, Brecon and Radnorshire, Caerphilly, Cynon Valley, and Islwyn.

## History

The constituency was created for the 1983 general election. Prior to this, Merthyr Tydfil had been in its own eponymous constituency, and Rhymney was in the seat of Ebbw Vale (at the time Michael Foot's constituency), which was abolished at that election.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Member | Party |
| 1983 | Ted Rowlands | Labour |
| 2001 | Dai Havard | Labour |
| 2015 | Gerald Jones | Labour |
| 2024 | Constituency abolished | Constituency abolished |

## Elections
### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1983: Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Ted Rowlands | 29,053 | 67.3 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Philip Owen | 6,323 | 14.7 | N/A |
| | Conservative | Richard Blausten | 5,449 | 12.6 | N/A |
| | Plaid Cymru | Gerald Howells | 2,058 | 4.8 | N/A |
| | Workers Revolutionary | Royden Gould | 256 | 0.6 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 22,730 | 52.6 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,139 | 72.5 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 59,486 | | |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |
General election 1987: Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Ted Rowlands | 33,477 | 75.3 | +8.0 |
| | Conservative | Nicholas Walters | 5,270 | 11.9 | −0.7 |
| | Liberal | Pravat Verma | 3,573 | 8.0 | −6.7 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Janet Davies | 2,085 | 4.7 | −0.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 28,130 | 63.4 | +10.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,405 | 76.2 | +3.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 58,285 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Ted Rowlands | 31,710 | 71.6 | −3.7 |
| | Liberal | Robyn Rowland | 4,997 | 11.3 | +3.3 |
| | Conservative | Mark Hughes | 4,904 | 11.1 | −0.8 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Alun Cox | 2,704 | 6.1 | +1.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 26,713 | 60.3 | −3.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,315 | 75.8 | −0.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 58,430 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −3.5 | |
General election 1997: Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Ted Rowlands | 30,012 | 76.7 | +5.1 |
| | Liberal | Duncan Anstey | 2,926 | 7.5 | −3.8 |
| | Conservative | Jonathan Morgan | 2,508 | 6.4 | −4.7 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Alun Cox | 2,344 | 6.0 | −0.1 |
| | Independent Labour | Alan Cowdell | 691 | 1.8 | N/A |
| | Referendum | Ronald Hutchings | 660 | 1.7 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 27,086 | 69.2 | +8.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,141 | 69.3 | −6.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 56,507 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +4.5 | |

### Elections in the 2000s

General election 2001: Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Dai Havard | 19,574 | 61.8 | −14.9 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Robert Hughes | 4,651 | 14.7 | +8.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Keith Rogers | 2,385 | 7.5 | ±0.0 |
| | Conservative | Richard Cuming | 2,272 | 7.2 | +0.8 |
| | Independent | Jeffrey Edwards | 1,936 | 6.1 | N/A |
| | Socialist Labour | Ken Evans | 692 | 2.2 | N/A |
| | ProLife Alliance | Anthony Lewis | 174 | 0.5 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 14,923 | 47.1 | −22.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 31,684 | 57.7 | −11.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 54,919 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -11.8 | |
General election 2005: Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Dai Havard | 18,129 | 60.5 | −1.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ceirion Rees | 4,195 | 14.0 | +6.5 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Noel Turner | 2,972 | 9.9 | −4.8 |
| | Conservative | Roger Berry | 2,680 | 8.9 | +1.7 |
| | Forward Wales | Neil Greer | 1,030 | 3.4 | N/A |
| | UKIP | Gwyn Parry | 699 | 2.3 | N/A |
| | Socialist Labour | Ina Marsden | 271 | 0.9 | −1.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,934 | 46.5 | −0.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 29,976 | 54.9 | −2.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 54,044 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -3.9 | |

### Elections in the 2010s

General election 2010: Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Dai Havard | 14,007 | 43.7 | −16.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Amy Kitcher | 9,951 | 31.0 | +17.0 |
| | Conservative | Maria Hill | 2,412 | 7.5 | −1.4 |
| | Independent | Clive Tovey | 1,845 | 5.8 | N/A |
| | Plaid Cymru | Glyndwr Jones | 1,621 | 5.1 | −4.8 |
| | BNP | Richard Barnes | 1,173 | 3.7 | N/A |
| | UKIP | Adam Brown | 872 | 2.7 | +0.4 |
| | Socialist Labour | Alan Cowdell | 195 | 0.6 | −0.3 |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 80 | | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,056 | 12.7 | −33.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,076 | 58.6 | +3.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 54,715 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -16.9 | |
Of the 80 rejected ballots:
* 22 were either unmarked or it was uncertain who the vote was for.
* 57 voted for more than one candidate.
* 1 had writing or mark by which the voter could be identified.
General election 2015: Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Gerald Jones | 17,619 | 53.9 | +10.2 |
| | UKIP | David Rowlands | 6,106 | 18.7 | +16.0 |
| | Conservative | Bill Rees | 3,292 | 10.1 | +2.6 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Rhayna Mann | 3,099 | 9.5 | +4.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Bob Griffin | 1,351 | 4.1 | −26.9 |
| | Green | Elspeth Parris | 603 | 1.8 | N/A |
| | Independent | Eddy Blanche | 459 | 1.4 | N/A |
| | Communist | Robert Griffiths | 186 | 0.6 | N/A |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 95 | | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,513 | 35.2 | +22.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,715 | 53.0 | −5.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 61,716 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -2.8 | |
Of the 95 rejected ballots:
* 49 were either unmarked or it was uncertain who the vote was for.
* 46 voted for more than one candidate.
General election 2017: Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Gerald Jones | 22,407 | 66.8 | +12.9 |
| | Conservative | Pauline Jorgensen | 6,073 | 18.1 | +8.0 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Amy Kitcher | 2,740 | 8.2 | −1.3 |
| | UKIP | David Rowlands | 1,484 | 4.4 | −14.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Bob Griffin | 841 | 2.5 | −1.6 |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 71 | | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 16,334 | 48.7 | +13.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,545 | 60.5 | +7.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 55,463 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +2.4 | |
Of the 71 rejected ballots:
* 41 were either unmarked or it was uncertain who the vote was for.
* 30 voted for more than one candidate.
General election 2019: Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Gerald Jones | 16,913 | 52.4 | −14.4 |
| | Conservative | Sara Jones | 6,307 | 19.6 | +1.5 |
| | Brexit Party | David Jones | 3,604 | 11.2 | N/A |
| | Plaid Cymru | Mark Evans | 2,446 | 7.6 | −0.6 |
| | Independent | David Hughes | 1,860 | 5.8 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Brendan D’Cruz | 1,116 | 3.5 | +1.0 |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 83 | | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,606 | 32.8 | −15.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,246 | 57.4 | −3.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 56,322 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −8.0 | |
Of the 83 rejected ballots:
* 23 voted for more than one candidate.
* 4 had writing or mark by which the voter could be identified.
* 56 had want of official mark.