Labour’s 100-year Welsh dominance in the balance as second poll shows them in third place

A second consecutive YouGov poll for the EU Elections has seen the usual political order in Wales uprooted as the Brexit Party and Plaid Cymru take the lead.

The YouGov/ITV poll was due to be kept under wraps until 6pm tonight but was tweeted out by Brexit Party Assembly Member Mark Reckless.

Latest Wales European Election poll (You Gov) Brexit Party 36%, Plaid Cymru 19%, Labour 15%, Lib Dem 10%, Green 8%, Conservative 7%, UKIP 2%, CHUK 2%

— Mark Reckless AM (@MarkReckless) May 20, 2019

In the poll, the Brexit Party is on 36% of the vote and Plaid Cymru on 19%. Labour, the Liberal Democrats and Greens are on 15%, 10% and 8%.

The Conservatives wallow in sixth place on 7%, with UKIP and Change UK bringing up the rear on 2% and 2%.

• Brexit Party: 36%
• Plaid Cymru: 19%
• Labour: 15%
• Liberal Democrats: 10%
• Greens: 8%
• Conservative: 7%
• UKIP: 2%
• Change UK: 2%

These results would return two Brexit Party MEPs, and one each for Plaid Cymru and Labour.

This is the second poll to show similar results after one on Saturday by Best for Britain showed the Brexit Party on 35%, Plaid Cymru on 19% and Labour on 15% in Wales.

The poll will be a particular shock to the Labour Party, who have won all but one poll in Wales (the 2009 European elections, where they were narrowly beaten by the Conservatives) in a hundred years.

If the result was replicated in the Election on Thursday, it would also be the only time ever that Plaid Cymru has finished ahead of the Labour Party in Wales.

‘Urgent’

Commenting on the results of the Wales Barometer Poll published today (Monday 20 May 2019), which put Plaid Cymru in second place in the European election, a Plaid Cymru spokesperson said:

“Just three days ahead of the European election, this poll proves beyond all doubt that Plaid Cymru is the only Remain party that is on course to win in Wales.

“A growing number of people are realising that the European election is now a binary choice between Plaid Cymru and the Brexit party. Liberal Democrats and Greens simply cannot win here.

“This makes our appeal to the supporters of other Remain-supporting parties all the more pertinent: the only way to beat Brexit is to vote for Plaid Cymru.

“If Lib Dems and Greens, and disillusioned Labour voters, lend Plaid Cymru their votes, we can win a majority for Remain on Thursday.

“Our call to them is now urgent: voting for any party other than Plaid Cymru risks handing success to the Brexit party.

“This poll confirms that if you want Wales to remain in the EU, your only viable option in the European election is to vote Plaid Cymru.”

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