First candidate enters race to succeed Drakeford as Welsh FM

Vaughan Gething has announced he is standing as leader of the Labour Party in Wales.

The contest was triggered by the resignation of Mark Drakeford on Wednesday after five years in the role.

Mr Gething has been the Welsh government’s economy minister for the last two and a half years and was health minister during the COVID pandemic.

Announcing his candidacy on Thursday, he said there was “a huge task ahead of us, both as a party and as a government”.

He said he was “deeply honoured to have such strong support from right across the party”.

He stood at the last leadership election in 2018, finishing in second place in the members’ vote, behind Mr Drakeford.

Whoever wins the race to lead Welsh Labour is also expected to become first minister of Wales.

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Labour won 30 of the Senedd‘s 60 seats at the last election in 2021 but have formed a co-operation agreement with Plaid Cymru on key policy areas.

Other names expected to stand are Wales’s current health minister Eluned Morgan and education minister Jeremy Miles.

Read more:
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A look back at Mark Drakeford’s career as he quits

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Leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf council, Andrew Morgan, has thrown his support behind Mr Miles, even though he is yet to formally declare his candidacy.

Swansea East Senedd member, Mike Hedges, told Sky News he would like to see the “greatest diversity of candidates” and that those standing should “certainly” include a woman.