The vast new Wales constituency many voters fear is 'just too big'

Next month's Senedd election sees a whole host of new constituencies —and one of them is huge. Lewis Smith reports

- Lewis Smith reports

FROM the mid-Wales towns of Powys to the postindustrial valleys of Neath Port Talbot and Swansea, two very different parts of Wales are about to come together on the political map.

In rural towns such as Brecon and Llandrindod Wells, life is heavily influenced by the countryside with issues such as farming, tourism and access to services all key to the mindset of residents when it comes to an election period.

Travel south to the towns of Neath and Pontardawe, though, and the picture is a little different, with topics such as employment, the NHS and local regeneration at the top of the list for the close-knit valleys communities.

Despite these differences that encompass both culture and voting history in the 2026 Senedd elections they will be brought together under a new political seat known as Brycheiniog Tawe Nedd - a large geographical area that spans a distance all the way from the coast up to the centre of mid-Wales.

It is a seat created as part of major reforms to the election process in Wales that were designed to modernise Welsh democracy with a new voting system, more elected members, and new constituencies.

Each seat will elect six Senedd members chosen by proportional representation, meaning the seats will be shared among the largest parties.

Brycheiniog Tawe Nedd stretches from the coast south of the River Tawe in Swansea, covering the east of the city including Llandarcy and Llansamlet, parts of Neath, as well as Ystalyfera, right up through the Brecon Beacons, Llanelwedd, Llandrindod Wells, ending in the north at Cilfaesty Hill, just south of Newtown.

In previous elections places such as Neath and Swansea east have been among Labour's most reliable heartlands, with locals consistently deciding on Labour members to represent them in the Senedd since it first began in 1999.