1998 Welsh Labour leadership election

Welsh Labour Party leadership election

1998 Welsh Labour leadership election

* * *

|  | 19 September | 1999 ->

|
|

|  |  |

|
|

Candidate  | Ron Davies | Rhodri Morgan
Overall Result  | 68% | 32%

* * *

|  | Elected Leader

Ron Davies

|

The 1998 Welsh Labour Party leadership election was held on 19 September 1998. Secretary of State for Wales Ron Davies was elected as Welsh Labour Leader and nominee for First Secretary.[1]

## Candidates

[edit]

* Ron Davies, Member of Parliament for Caerphilly since 1983 and Secretary of State for Wales since May 1997.
* Rhodri Morgan, Member of Parliament for Cardiff West since 1987, backbencher, Chair of Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Select Committee since May 1997.

## Result

[edit]

Ron Davies won with 68% of the vote, winning all three sections of Welsh Labour's electoral college formed from the party's Welsh MPs, MEPs approved assembly candidates, the trade unions and the party's members.[2]

In his memoirs, Rhodri Morgan wrote:

"[The Welsh MPs] went heavily for Ron, although I kept majority among the approved panel of Assembly candidates down to 32-22. Of the candidates subsequently elected to the Assembly it was 4-4. The unions went for Ron, even my own union the T&G. The party members' vote split much more evenly, but I didn't maintain the early success I'd had in Aberavon and Swansea [CLPs], although I did get a majority of the constituency nominations."[3]

## Aftermath

[edit]

Davies would go on to serve until his resignation just over a month later on 29 October 1998, two days after resigning as Secretary of State for Wales on 27 October 1998. He stood down citing "an error of judgement" in agreeing to go for what he said was a meal with a man he had met while walking on Clapham Common in London, which is a well-known gay meeting place. He was mugged at knifepoint. The full details of the incident (which he infamously called a "moment of madness" at the urging of Tony Blair's Press Secretary Alastair Campbell) have never emerged.[4]

Morgan went on to fight the next leadership election only to loose to Alun Michael, Morgan himself would go on to be elected unopposed in the third leadership election in three years in February 2000, a position he would hold until December 2009.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Davies beats off backbench challenge". BBC News.
2. ^ "Davies beats off backbench challenge". BBC News.
3. ^ Morgan, Rhodri (2017). A political life in Wales and Westminster. University of Wales Press. p. 124\. ISBN 978-1-78683-147-7.
4. ^ "My 'moment of madness'". BBC News. 31 October 1998. Archived from the original on 9 October 2007. Retrieved 15 May 2007.

* v
* t
* e

Welsh Labour

* Labour Party
* Political parties in Wales
* in the United Kingdom

Leaders|

* Ron Davies (Sep 1998–Oct 1998)
* Alun Michael (1999–2000)
* Rhodri Morgan (2000–2009)
* Carwyn Jones (2009–2018)
* Mark Drakeford (2018–2024)
* Vaughan Gething (Mar 2024–Jul 2024)
* Eluned Morgan (2024–present)

Deputy Leaders|

* Carolyn Harris (2018–present)

General Secretaries|

* Cliff Prothero (1947)
* Emrys Jones (1965)
* Hubert Morgan (1979)
* Anita Gale (1984)
* Jessica Morden (1999)
* Chris Roberts (2005)
* David Hagendyk (2010)
* Louise Magee (2017)
* Jo McIntyre (2022)

Current MSs|

* Mick Antoniw
* Hannah Blythyn
* Dawn Bowden
* Jayne Bryant
* Hefin David
* Alun Davies
* Mark Drakeford
* Rebecca Evans
* Vaughan Gething
* John Griffiths
* Lesley Griffiths
* Mike Hedges
* Vikki Howells
* Jane Hutt
* Huw Irranca-Davies
* Julie James
* Jeremy Miles
* Eluned Morgan (leader)
* Julie Morgan
* Sarah Murphy
* Lynne Neagle
* Rhianon Passmore
* Jenny Rathbone
* David Rees
* Jack Sargeant
* Ken Skates
* Carolyn Thomas
* Lee Waters
* Joyce Watson
* Buffy Williams

2019–2024 MPs|

* Tonia Antoniazzi
* Kevin Brennan
* Chris Bryant
* Wayne David
* Geraint Davies
* Alex Davies-Jones
* Stephen Doughty
* Chris Elmore
* Chris Evans
* Nia Griffith
* Carolyn Harris
* Gerald Jones
* Ruth Jones
* Stephen Kinnock
* Anna McMorrin
* Jessica Morden
* Nick Smith
* Jo Stevens
* Mark Tami
* Nick Thomas-Symonds
* Beth Winter

Former MPs|

* Christina Rees (suspended)

Structure|

* Welsh Executive Committee
* Welsh Labour Students
* Welsh Young Labour
* History
* Clear red water

| Factions|

* Labour for an Independent Wales
* Labour and Co-operative (electoral pact)

|

In Government|

* Michael (1999–2000)
* Interim Rhodri Morgan (2000)
* First Rhodri Morgan (2000–2003)
* Second Rhodri Morgan (2003–2007)
* Third Rhodri Morgan (2007–2007)
* Fourth Rhodri Morgan (2007–2009; Coalition under One Wales with Plaid Cymru)
* First Jones (2009–2011; Coalition under One Wales with Plaid Cymru)
* Second Jones (2011–2016)
* Third Jones (2016–2018)
* First Drakeford (2018–2021)
* Second Drakeford (2021–2024; agreement with Plaid Cymru)
* Gething (2024)
* Eluned Morgan (2024–present)

Leadership elections|

* 1998 Davies
* 1999 Michael
* 2000 Morgan
* 2009 Jones
* 2018 Drakeford
* Feb–Mar 2024 Gething
* Jul 2024 Morgan

Deputy leadership elections|

* 2018 Harris

* Category

* v
* t
* e

Labour Party

History

| Main|

* History of the Labour Party

|

Topics|

* Electoral history
* General election manifestos
* History of the socialist movement in the United Kingdom
* European Parliamentary Labour Party
* Scottish Labour Party (1888)
* Independent Labour Party
* Labour Representation Committee
* Gladstone–MacDonald pact
* National Labour Organisation
* Labour Independent Group
* Campaign for Democratic Socialism
* Lib–Lab pact
* Formation of SDP
* Gang of Four
* Limehouse Declaration
* Militant tendency
* The longest suicide note in history
* One more heave
* New Labour
* Tony's Cronies
* Blue Labour
* One Nation Labour
* Chakrabarti Inquiry

Leadership

| Leaders|

* Hardie
* Henderson
* Barnes
* MacDonald
* Henderson
* Adamson
* Clynes
* MacDonald
* Henderson
* Lansbury
* Attlee
* Morrison^
* Gaitskell
* Brown^
* Wilson
* Callaghan
* Foot
* Kinnock
* Smith
* Beckett^
* Blair
* Brown
* Harman^
* Miliband
* Harman^
* Corbyn
* Starmer

|

Deputy Leaders|

* Clynes
* Graham
* Attlee
* Greenwood
* Morrison
* Griffiths
* Bevan
* Brown
* Jenkins
* Short
* Foot
* Healey
* Hattersley
* Beckett
* Prescott
* Harman
* Watson
* Rayner

General Secretaries|

* MacDonald
* Henderson
* Middleton
* Phillips
* Williams
* Barker^
* Nicholas
* Hayward
* Mortimer
* Whitty
* Sawyer
* McDonagh
* Triesman
* Carter
* Watt
* Collins
* McNicol
* Formby
* Evans

Treasurers|

* Henderson
* MacDonald
* Henderson
* Lathan
* Greenwood
* Gaitskell
* Bevan
* Nicholas
* Davies
* Callaghan
* Atkinson
* Varley
* Booth
* McCluskie
* Burlison
* Prosser
* Elsby
* Dromey
* Holland

Leaders in the Lords|

* Haldane
* Cripps
* Ponsonby
* Snell
* Addison
* Jowitt
* Alexander
* Pakenham
* Shackleton
* Shepherd
* Peart
* Hughes
* Richard
* Jay
* Williams
* Amos
* Ashton
* Royall
* Smith of Basildon

Scottish Labour Leaders|

* Dewar
* McLeish
* Jamieson^
* McConnell
* Jamieson^
* Alexander
* Jamieson^
* Gray
* Lamont
* Sarwar^
* Murphy
* Gray^
* Dugdale
* Rowley^
* Baillie^
* Leonard
* Baillie^
* Sarwar

PLP Chairs|

* Hardie
* Henderson
* Barnes
* MacDonald
* Henderson
* Hodge*
* Wardle*
* Adamson
* Clynes
* MacDonald
* Henderson
* Lansbury
* Attlee
* Lees-Smith*
* Pethick-Lawrence*
* Greenwood*
* Gaitskell
* Wilson
* Houghton
* Mikardo
* Hughes
* Willey
* Dormand
* Orme
* Hoyle
* Soley
* Corston
* Clwyd
* Lloyd
* Watts
* Cryer

EPLP Leaders|

* Stewart
* Prescott
* Castle
* Lomas
* Martin
* Seal
* Ford
* Green
* David
* Donnelly
* Murphy
* Titley
* Willmott
* Corbett

* = wartime, in opposition
^ Interim/Acting

Internal elections and selections

| Leadership elections|

* 1922 Ramsay MacDonald
* 1931 Arthur Henderson
* 1932 George Lansbury
* 1935 Clement Attlee
* 1955 Hugh Gaitskell
* 1960
* 1961
* 1963 Harold Wilson
* 1976 James Callaghan
* 1980 Michael Foot
* 1983 Neil Kinnock
* 1988
* 1992 John Smith
* 1994 Tony Blair
* 2007 Gordon Brown
* 2010 Ed Miliband
* 2015 Jeremy Corbyn
* 2016
* 2020 Keir Starmer

* * *

|

Deputy Leadership elections|

* 1952 Herbert Morrison
* 1953
* 1956 Jim Griffiths
* 1959 Aneurin Bevan
* 1960 George Brown
* 1961
* 1962
* 1970 Roy Jenkins
* 1971
* 1972 Edward Short
* 1976 Michael Foot
* 1980 Denis Healey
* 1981
* 1983 Roy Hattersley
* 1988
* 1992 Margaret Beckett
* 1994 John Prescott
* 2007 Harriet Harman
* 2015 Tom Watson
* 2020 Angela Rayner

Shadow Cabinet elections and reshuffles|

* Sep 1931 (Henderson)
* Nov 1931
* 1932 (Lansbury)
* 1933
* 1934
* 1935 (Attlee)
* 1936
* 1937
* 1938
* 1939
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1954
* 1955
* 1956 (Gaitskell)
* 1957
* 1958
* 1959
* 1960
* 1961
* 1962
* 1963 (Wilson)
* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1973
* 1979 (Callaghan)
* 1980 (Foot)
* 1981
* 1982
* 1983 (Kinnock)
* 1984
* 1985
* 1986
* 1987
* 1988
* 1989
* 1990
* 1991
* 1992 (Smith)
* 1993
* 1994 (Blair)
* 1995
* 1996
* 2010 (Miliband)
* June 2016 (Corbyn)
* May 2021 (Starmer)
* November 2021
* 2023

Party structure

| Constitution|

* Clause IV

|

Executive|

* National Executive Committee
* General Secretary
* Treasurer

Parliamentary|

* Parliamentary Labour Party
* Chief Whip of the Labour Party

Conference|

* Labour Party Conference

Subnational|

* Scottish Labour
* Welsh Labour
* Labour Party in Northern Ireland

Directly elected city mayoral authorities|

* London Labour

CLPs|

* Constituency Labour Party
* Labour International

Miscellaneous|

* National Policy Forum
* Affiliated trade unions
* Trade Union and Labour Party Liaison Organisation
* Labour Co-operative
* Co-operative Party
* Labour – Federation of Labour Groups

Associated organisations

| List|

* Organisations associated with the Labour Party

|

Sectional groups|

* Young Labour
* Labour International
* LGBT+ Labour
* Labour Campaign for Trans Rights
* Labour Students
* BAME Labour
* Disability Labour

Factional groups|

* Blue Labour
* Campaign for Labour Party Democracy
* Christians on the Left
* Compass
* Fabian Society
* Young Fabians
* Future Britain
* Centre-Left Grassroots Alliance
* Jewish Labour Movement
* Labour Campaign for Electoral Reform
* Labour CND
* Labour Friends of Israel
* Labour Friends of Palestine & the Middle East
* Labour Growth Group
* Labour Party Irish Society
* Labour Representation Committee (2004)
* Labour Women's Network
* Momentum
* Open Labour
* National Union of Labour and Socialist Clubs
* Progressive Britain
* Revolutionary Communist Party Formerly Socialist Appeal
* Socialist Health Association
* Socialist Educational Association
* Socialist Environment and Resources Association
* Socialist Campaign Group
* Socialist Youth Network
* Socialist societies

Media publications|

* LabourList
* Tribune

Party alliances

| Current|

* Party of European Socialists
* Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats
* Progressive Alliance
* Socialist International

|

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template