# Aberdare (UK Parliament constituency)

Aberdare was a constituency in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was created for the 1918 general election and returned one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system until it was abolished for the 1983 general election. The Labour Party gained the seat in 1922 and held it comfortably until its abolition.

## Boundaries and name

The constituency consisted of the two neighbouring towns of Aberdare and Mountain Ash in Glamorgan, Wales. When the seat was abolished in 1983, it was largely replaced by the Cynon Valley seat.

### 1918–1950

Under the Representation of the People Act 1918, the existing parliamentary borough of Merthyr Tydfil was divided into two single-member constituencies. One of these was Merthyr Tydfil, Aberdare Division, which consisted of the two urban districts of Aberdare and Mountain Ash.

### 1950–1983

The Representation of the People Act 1948 reorganised constituencies throughout the United Kingdom, and introduced the term "borough constituency" in place of "parliamentary borough". The duly renamed Aberdare Borough Constituency was again defined as consisting of the Aberdare and Mountain Ash urban districts. The renamed constituency was first contested at the 1950 general election. It was unchanged at the next revision of constituencies in 1970, continuing with the same name and boundaries until its abolition in 1983.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Member | Party |
| 1918 | Charles Stanton | Coalition National Democratic |
| 1922 | George Hall | Labour |
| 1946 by-election | David Thomas | Labour |
| 1954 by-election | Arthur Probert | Labour |
| Feb 1974 | Ioan Evans | Labour Co-operative |
| 1983 | constituency abolished: see Cynon Valley | constituency abolished: see Cynon Valley |

## History

The first member for Aberdare was Charles Stanton, Stanton was a militant miners' agent in the pre-1914 era but had become an equally fierce proponent of the war effort which brought him into conflict with former colleagues including Keir Hardie. Stanton was elected to succeed Hardie as member for Merthyr Boroughs at a by-election in 1915 and comfortably won the Aberdare constituency at the 1918 Coupon Election.
By 1922, Stanton's appeal and popularity had faded and he was defeated by George Hall, who held the seat for over twenty years.
Labour's hold on Aberdare was never threatened thereafter although Plaid Cymru did make a strong showing at the 1970 general election. Glyn Owen, the new Plaid Cymru candidate in 1974, sustained the campaign from 1970 but this did not seriously threaten the new Labour candidate, Ioan Evans, at the second election that year.

### Elections in the 1910s

December 1918 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| C | National Democratic | Charles Stanton | 22,824 | 78.6 | |
| | Labour | T. E. Nicholas | 6,229 | 21.4 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 16,595 | 57.2 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 29,053 | 69.8 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 41,651 | | |
| | National Democratic win (new seat) | National Democratic win (new seat) | National Democratic win (new seat) | National Democratic win (new seat) | National Democratic win (new seat) |
| C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. ||||||

### Elections in the 1920s

1922 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | George Hall | 20,704 | 57.2 | +35.8 |
| | National Democratic | Charles Stanton | 15,487 | 42.8 | −35.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,217 | 14.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 36,191 | 79.9 | +10.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 45,285 | | |
| | Labour gain from National Democratic | Labour gain from National Democratic | Swing | +35.8 | |
1923 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | George Hall | 22,379 | 58.2 | +1.0 |
| | Liberal | William M. Llewellyn | 16,050 | 41.8 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,329 | 16.4 | +2.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,429 | 83.3 | +3.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 46,148 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +1.0 | |
1924 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | George Hall | 24,343 | 61.6 | +3.4 |
| | Liberal | David Bowen (Welsh lawyer) | 15,201 | 38.4 | −3.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,142 | 23.2 | +6.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,544 | 83.7 | +0.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 47,267 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +3.4 | |
1929 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | George Hall | 29,550 | 64.6 | +3.0 |
| | Liberal | Evan Joshua Roderick | 10,594 | 23.2 | −15.2 |
| | Unionist | Hugh Molson | 5,573 | 12.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 18,956 | 41.4 | +18.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,717 | 84.5 | +0.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 54,134 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +9.1 | |

### Elections in the 1930s

1931 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | George Hall | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold |
1935 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | George Hall | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold |

### Elections in the 1940s

1945 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | George Hall | 34,398 | 84.25 |
| | Conservative | Charles George Clover | 6,429 | 15.75 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 27,969 | 68.51 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,827 | 76.25 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
1946 Aberdare by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | David Thomas | 24,215 | 68.32 | −15.93 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Wynne Samuel | 7,090 | 20.00 | New |
| | Conservative | Lincoln Hallinan | 4,140 | 11.68 | −4.07 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 17,125 | 48.31 | −20.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 35,445 | 65.7 | −10.5 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1950s

1950 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | David Thomas | 33,930 | 75.9 | −8.67 |
| | Conservative | Robert N. E. Hinton | 6,098 | 13.6 | −1.95 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Wynne Samuel | 3,310 | 7.4 | N/A |
| | Communist | Alistair T. M. Wilson | 1,382 | 3.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 27,832 | 62.3 | −6.74 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,180 | 85.89 | +9.64 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 51,437 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
N.B. Changes in 1950 are from the 1945 election and not the 1946 by-election.
1951 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | David Thomas | 34,783 | 78.55 | +2.77 |
| | Conservative | Jack Lewis | 6,810 | 15.38 | +1.58 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Wynne Samuel | 2,691 | 6.08 | −1.41 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 27,963 | 63.17 | +0.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,284 | 86.12 | +0.23 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 51,423 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
1954 Aberdare by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Arthur Probert | 24,658 | 69.48 | −9.07 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Gwynfor Evans | 5,671 | 15.98 | +9.90 |
| | Conservative | Michael Roberts | 5,158 | 14.53 | −0.85 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 18,987 | 53.50 | −9.67 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 35,487 | 69.7 | −16.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 50,916 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
1955 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Arthur Probert | 30,889 | 75.6 | +0.6 |
| | Conservative | Bernard McGlynn | 6,584 | 16.1 | +0.5 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Ken P. Thomas | 3,367 | 8.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 24,305 | 59.5 | −0.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,840 | 83.1 | +4.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 50,333 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
1959 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Arthur Probert | 29,528 | 75.0 | −0.6 |
| | Conservative | William J. A. Bain | 6,162 | 15.6 | −0.5 |
| | Welsh Nationalist | Trefor Beasley | 3,703 | 9.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 23,366 | 59.4 | −0.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,393 | 78.3 | −4.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 49,124 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1960s

1964 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Arthur Probert | 29,106 | 77.4 | +2.4 |
| | Conservative | Peter Price | 5,780 | 15.4 | −0.2 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Dewi W. Thomas | 2,723 | 7.2 | −2.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 23,326 | 62.0 | +2.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 37,609 | 79.2 | +0.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 47,519 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
1966 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Arthur Probert | 26,322 | 73.3 | −4.1 |
| | Conservative | Peter Price | 4,204 | 11.7 | −3.7 |
| | Plaid Cymru | J. E. Williams | 3,073 | 8.6 | +1.4 |
| | Communist | Alistair T. M. Wilson | 2,305 | 6.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 22,118 | 61.6 | −0.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 35,904 | 77.0 | −2.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 46,618 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1970s

1970 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Arthur Probert | 22,817 | 60.0 | −13.3 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Gareth Morgan Jones | 11,431 | 30.0 | +21.4 |
| | Conservative | David C. Purnell | 2,484 | 6.5 | −5.2 |
| | Communist | Alistair T. M. Wilson | 1,317 | 3.5 | −2.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,386 | 29.9 | −31.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,049 | 77.9 | +0.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 48,771 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
February 1974 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour Co-op | Ioan Evans | 23,805 | 59.5 | −0.5 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Glyn Owen | 11,973 | 29.9 | −0.1 |
| | Conservative | Michael J. Niblock | 3,169 | 7.9 | +1.4 |
| | Communist | Alistair T. M. Wilson | 1,038 | 2.6 | −0.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,832 | 29.6 | −0.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,985 | 83.3 | +5.3 |
| | Labour Co-op hold | Labour Co-op hold | Swing | | |
October 1974 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour Co-op | Ioan Evans | 24,197 | 63.3 | +3.8 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Glyn Owen | 8,133 | 21.3 | −8.6 |
| | Conservative | B. G. C. Webb | 2,775 | 7.3 | −0.6 |
| | Liberal | G. Hill | 2,118 | 5.5 | New |
| | Communist | Alistair T. M. Wilson | 1,028 | 2.7 | +0.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 16,064 | 42.0 | +12.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,251 | 79.1 | −4.2 |
| | Labour Co-op hold | Labour Co-op hold | Swing | | |
1979 general election: Aberdare :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour Co-op | Ioan Evans | 26,716 | 71.6 | +8.3 |
| | Conservative | D. Deere | 6,453 | 17.3 | +10.0 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Phil Richards | 3,652 | 9.8 | −11.5 |
| | Communist | Mary Winter | 518 | 1.4 | −1.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 20,263 | 54.3 | +12.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 37,339 | 78.6 | −0.5 |
| | Labour Co-op hold | Labour Co-op hold | Swing | | |