Conservative councillor elected despite national situation

Cllr Rachel Buckler retained the Devauden seat for the Welsh Conservatives in the by-election, following the death of Bob Greenland, who was re-elected in May.

Cllr Buckler’s election means that Monmouthshire is Wales’ first council to have more women serving on it than men. By holding the seat, the Conservatives also kept Labour from holding half of the council’s seats.

However, the campaign came with a backdrop of Ms Truss’ brief spell as prime minister coming to an end - with votes cast on the day of the prime minister’s resignation.

“It was quite extraordinary,” said Cllr Buckler. “We did think this is really going to affect the outcome.

“And actually, I think it probably did. The independent candidate took quite a lot of votes. I think it’s fair to assume they were disaffected Tory voters.

“Labour only gained 12 votes from their May results. They put so much effort into winning it, I think it was one they thought they could win. I saw them out a lot over the five weeks.

“It was very hard fought. And it was very important to the residents of Devauden, as a 51 per cent turnout is pretty unheard of for a by-election.

“I thought it was interesting as it shows people are not switching off and are really thinking about it.

“The national situation did come up. In rural areas like Devauden, there are a lot of Conservative voters. They did feel the uncertainty of what’s going on and the leadership at national level.

“But they are also very conscious that we are in Wales and have the Welsh Labour Government and that worries them. They see poor healthcare and education and they feel like they are not being listened to.

“I think to be able to gather behind a new leader, we have so many issues to face as a country, some stability I think is at the route of it.”

Cllr Buckler said there was a mixture of local concerns – including pot holes and speeding – as well as concerns about energy cost and the Conservative party at a national level.

“I’m absolutely delighted to have the trust of Devauden residents,” she said.

“It was under the sad circumstances of the death of the Rev Bob Greenland, who was a loyal County Councillor here for many years, and he was remembered fondly the many local people I talked to during the campaign.

“Monmouthshire Council is not now held by a majority Labour group, to the relief of a great many people. We can hold them to account.

“The forecast £8.8 million deficit – and rising – is testament to the fact they should not have complete control.”

The Monmouthshire Conservative team at the Devauden by-election count. (Image: Monmouthshire Conservatives)

Cllr Richard John, leader of the Monmouthshire Conservatives, said: “I’m delighted that voters in Devauden have put their trust in Cllr Rachel Buckler, who will be a first class councillor for the area, building on the work of our much-missed colleague Bob Greenland.

“Winning a by-election despite the national turmoil for the Conservatives was testament to the personal support Rachel won through hard graft and a warm engaging manner on the doorsteps.

“I am especially proud that with Rachel’s election, another glass ceiling has been smashed and Monmouthshire has gone from being Wales’ first gender-balanced council to becoming Wales’ first council with more women than men.

“This proves that you can achieve gender equality with hard work and leadership, not through patronising all-women shortlists and gender quotas, but through better engagement, headhunting and supporting talented female  candidates.

“I hope this sets an example to other councils and political parties that you can broaden your representation without positive discrimination and ensure elected politicians better reflect the public.

“Labour were very confident about winning this seat and with a lead of up to 39 per cent in national opinion polls, they will surely be disappointed to win just 12 more votes than they had in May.

“This win shows that what matters in politics isn’t always what’s going on in Westminster – it’s about hard work in your community, staying in close contact with your residents and getting things done.”