# Blaenau Gwent (UK Parliament constituency)

Blaenau Gwent was a constituency in South Wales, that was represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament from 2010 to 2024 by Nick Smith of the Labour Party.
The constituency was abolished as part of the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies and under the June 2023 final recommendations of the Boundary Commission for Wales. The entire constituency became part of Blaenau Gwent and Rhymney.

## Constituency profile

Blaenau Gwent is a post-industrial area which formerly had significant coal and steel sectors.

## History
### Predecessor seats

Blaenau Gwent incorporates most of the area of Aneurin Bevan's old constituency and other areas as population expansion has been low or negative following the 1960s. The constituency was created in 1983, twenty-three years after Bevan's death, from the upper part of the former Abertillery constituency, the town of Brynmawr from Brecon and Radnor, and Bevan's old Ebbw Vale seat with the exception of the area of the Rhymney Community (formerly Rhymney Urban District). The then-Labour party leader Michael Foot, who had won Ebbw Vale in the by-election following Bevan's death, was the seat's first MP.

### Strong Labour Party majorities

Until 2005, the constituency statistically ranked in the top 20 safest Labour seats in the country by size of majority and by continuous representation by candidates from that party. In the 1983 and 1992 general elections, it was Labour's safest seat.
In the 2010 general election, Labour candidate Nick Smith gained the seat with a 29.2% swing from Independent back to Labour; as one of three seats Labour gained in that election where its government fell. The 2015 result made the seat the 30th safest of Labour's 232 seats by percentage of majority.

### Period of independent representation

At the 2005 general election, the Labour Welsh Assembly Member Peter Law ran as an independent and won the seat. He had resigned from the Labour Party in protest at the imposition of an all-women candidates' shortlist following the retirement of incumbent MP Llew Smith and he overturned a 19,313 (60%) Labour majority with a significant 9,121 (25%) majority. In 2006 the Labour Party decided not to require an all-women shortlist at the next general election.
Law died of a brain tumour on 25 April 2006, prompting a by-election in the seat on 29 June. Labour failed to regain the seat as Law's former campaign manager, Dai Davies, was elected to replace him, beating Owen Smith, the Labour candidate who later became MP for Pontypridd.

### Opposition parties

The Conservative Party and Liberal Democrats have both been very weak in the seat. From 1987 until 2017 neither had ever won 10% of the vote and the Conservatives had never achieved one eighth of the total votes cast. However, in 2015 the Conservatives achieved just under 15% of the vote, with Plaid Cymru in second place after Labour. In 2005 the Liberal Democrats received their lowest share of the vote in the United Kingdom and the Conservatives their second lowest, and both lost their deposits, though this particular election saw unusual circumstances.
The 2010 result was one of few where an Independent candidate kept their deposit, winning in excess of 5% of the votes cast, and pushed one of the main three parties into fourth place; the independent Blaenau Gwent People's Voice group fielded no candidate in 2015. Three non-Labour candidates exceeded 5% of the vote (the deposit threshold) in 2015, the foremost locally being UKIP (who achieved nearly 18% of the vote), but the Lib Dem and Green candidates failed to retain their deposits.

## Boundaries

The constituency boundaries are coterminous with those of Blaenau Gwent county borough. The main towns are Ebbw Vale, Abertillery, Brynmawr and Tredegar.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Member | Party |
| 1983 | Michael Foot | Labour |
| 1992 | Llew Smith | Labour |
| 2005 | Peter Law | Independent |
| 2006 by-election | Dai Davies | Blaenau Gwent People's Voice |
| 2010 | Nick Smith | Labour |
| 2024 | Constituency abolished | Constituency abolished |

## Elections
### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1983: Blaenau Gwent :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Michael Foot | 30,113 | 70.0 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Gareth Atkinson | 6,488 | 15.1 | N/A |
| | Conservative | Talmai Morgan | 4,816 | 11.2 | N/A |
| | Plaid Cymru | Stephen Morgan | 1,624 | 3.7 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 23,625 | 54.9 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,041 | 76.8 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 55,948 | | |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |
General election 1987: Blaenau Gwent :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Michael Foot | 32,820 | 75.9 | +5.9 |
| | Conservative | Andrew Taylor | 4,959 | 11.5 | +0.3 |
| | Liberal | David McBride | 3,847 | 8.9 | −6.2 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Stephen Morgan | 1,621 | 3.7 | ±0.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 27,861 | 64.4 | +9.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,247 | 77.2 | +0.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 56,011 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +2.8 | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Blaenau Gwent :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Llew Smith | 34,333 | 79.0 | +3.1 |
| | Conservative | David Melding | 4,266 | 9.8 | −1.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Alistair Burns | 2,774 | 6.4 | −2.5 |
| | Plaid Cymru (Green) | Alun Davies | 2,099 | 4.8 | +1.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 30,067 | 69.2 | +4.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,472 | 78.1 | +0.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 55,638 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +2.4 | |
General election 1997: Blaenau Gwent :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Llew Smith | 31,493 | 79.5 | +0.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Geraldine Layton | 3,458 | 8.7 | +2.3 |
| | Conservative | Margrit A. Williams | 2,607 | 6.6 | −3.2 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Jim B. Criddle | 2,072 | 5.2 | +0.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 28,035 | 70.8 | +1.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,630 | 72.3 | −5.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 54,815 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 2000s

General election 2001: Blaenau Gwent :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Llew Smith | 22,855 | 72.0 | −7.5 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Adam Rykala | 3,542 | 11.2 | +6.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Charles Townsend | 2,945 | 9.3 | +0.6 |
| | Conservative | Huw Williams | 2,383 | 7.5 | +0.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 19,313 | 60.8 | −10.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 31,725 | 59.5 | −12.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 53,353 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 2005: Blaenau Gwent :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent | Peter Law | 20,505 | 58.2 | N/A |
| | Labour | Maggie Jones | 11,384 | 32.3 | −39.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Brian Thomas | 1,511 | 4.3 | −5.0 |
| | Plaid Cymru | John Price | 843 | 2.4 | −8.8 |
| | Conservative | Phillip Lee | 816 | 2.4 | −5.1 |
| | UKIP | Peter Osborne | 192 | 0.5 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,121 | 25.9 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 35,251 | 66.1 | +6.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 53,301 | | |
| | Independent gain from Labour | Independent gain from Labour | Swing | +48.9 | |
2006 Blaenau Gwent by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Blaenau Gwent PV | Dai Davies | 12,543 | 46.2 | −12.0 |
| | Labour | Owen Smith | 10,055 | 37.0 | +4.7 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Steffan Lewis | 1,755 | 6.5 | +4.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Amy Kitcher | 1,477 | 5.4 | +1.1 |
| | Conservative | Margrit Williams | 1,013 | 3.7 | +1.3 |
| | Monster Raving Loony | Alan "Howling Laud" Hope | 318 | 1.2 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,488 | 9.2 | −16.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 27,161 | 50.5 | −15.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 52,512 | | |
| | Independent hold | Independent hold | Swing | −8.4 | |

### Elections in the 2010s

General election 2010: Blaenau Gwent :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Nick Smith | 16,974 | 52.4 | +20.1 |
| | Blaenau Gwent PV | Dai Davies | 6,458 | 19.9 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Matt Smith | 3,285 | 10.1 | +5.8 |
| | Conservative | Liz Stevenson | 2,265 | 7.0 | +4.6 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Rhodri Davies | 1,333 | 4.1 | +1.7 |
| | BNP | Anthony King | 1,211 | 3.7 | N/A |
| | UKIP | Michael Kocan | 488 | 1.5 | +1.0 |
| | Socialist Labour | Alyson O'Connell | 381 | 1.2 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,516 | 32.5 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,395 | 61.8 | −4.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 52,442 | | |
| | Labour gain from Blaenau Gwent PV | Labour gain from Blaenau Gwent PV | Swing | +29.2 | |
General election 2015: Blaenau Gwent :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Nick Smith | 18,380 | 58.0 | +5.6 |
| | UKIP | Susan Boucher | 5,677 | 17.9 | +16.4 |
| | Conservative | Tracey West | 3,419 | 10.8 | +3.8 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Steffan Lewis | 2,849 | 9.0 | +4.9 |
| | Green | Mark Pond | 738 | 2.3 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Samuel Rees | 620 | 2.0 | −8.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,703 | 40.1 | +7.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 31,683 | 61.7 | −0.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 51,335 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −5.4 | |
General election 2017: Blaenau Gwent :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Nick Smith | 18,787 | 58.0 | ±0.0 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Nigel Copner | 6,880 | 21.2 | +12.2 |
| | Conservative | Tracey West | 4,783 | 14.8 | +4.0 |
| | UKIP | Dennis May | 973 | 3.0 | −14.9 |
| | Independent | Vicki Browning | 666 | 2.1 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Cameron Sullivan | 295 | 0.9 | −1.1 |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 35 | | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,907 | 36.8 | −3.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,384 | 63.3 | +1.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 51,176 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −6.1 | |
Of the 35 rejected ballots:
* 25 were either unmarked or it was uncertain who the vote was for.
* 9 voted for more than one candidate.
* 1 had writing or mark by which the voter could be identified.
General election 2019: Blaenau Gwent :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Nick Smith | 14,862 | 49.2 | −8.8 |
| | Brexit Party | Richard Taylor | 6,215 | 20.6 | N/A |
| | Conservative | Laura Anne Jones | 5,749 | 19.0 | +4.2 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Peredur Owen Griffiths | 1,722 | 5.7 | −15.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Chelsea-Marie Annett | 1,285 | 4.3 | +3.4 |
| | Green | Stephen Priestnall | 386 | 1.3 | N/A |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 84 | | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,647 | 28.6 | −8.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 30,219 | 59.6 | −3.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 50,736 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −14.7 | |
Of the 84 rejected ballots:
* 44 were either unmarked or it was uncertain who the vote was for.
* 30 voted for more than one candidate.
* 10 had writing or mark by which the voter could be identified.
This was the largest decrease in the Plaid Cymru vote share at the 2019 general election.