An election to the Carmarthenshire County Council was held in March 1922.[1] It was preceded by the 1919 election and followed by the 1925 election.
Overview of the result
The election saw a reduction in the number of candidates openly supporting the Liberal Party as an increasing number stood as Independents. Labour continued to gain some ground in the Llanelli and Ammanford districts.
Boundary changes
There were no boundary changes.
Unopposed returns
22 of the 53 divisions were uncontested, with the majority of the unopposed returns being in the rural parts of the county.
Contested elections
Contests in Llanelli town and in the surrounding areas saw a significant campaign by the Labour Party, but its success remained limited.[2]
In addition to the 53 councillors the council consisted of 17 county aldermen. Aldermen were elected by the council, and served a six-year term, and from the formation of the council aldermen had not been obliged to face an election before being re-appointed.
Some Welsh councils, notably Glamorgan, had required aldermen to seek re-election and demands for a similar process in Carmarthenshire had been made from time to time. At a private meeting of the council held on 9 March it was resolved that, in future, retiring aldermen in Carmarthenshire would be required to seek re-election. It was, however, decided that this policy would not be immediately implemented as retiring aldermen had not been given sufficient notice.[3] Only one of the retiring members, namely Tom Morris, the Labour member for Betws, has sought election (and had been returned unopposed).
At the statutory meeting held on 16 March, a list on names selected by the western and eastern members respectively were submitted. L.D. Thomas, the Mayor of Carmarthen and a new member, protested against this approach but the majority of councillors overwhelmingly supported the nine nominations.[4]
Consequently, the following eight aldermen were elected (with the number of votes in each case).
Thomas Thomas, retiring alderman (45)
Tom Morris, retiring alderman (43)
H Jones-Thomas, retiring alderman (43)
W.J. Williams, retiring alderman (43)
Ben Evans, retiring alderman (42)
F.D.W. Williams-Drummond, retiring alderman (39)
H.E. Blagdon-Richards, retiring alderman (35)
John Lewis, retiring alderman
References
^"County Council Elections". Carmarthen Journal. 11 March 1922.
^"Labour fails to make headway". Llanelly Mercury. 9 March 1922.
