New political party launches in Wales and invites public to stand as candidates

A new political party, with a mission to “open up politics to everyone”, has launched in Wales and is inviting members of the public to stand as candidates in the Casnewydd Islwyn super-constituency in next May’s Senedd election.

The Open Party aims to shake up the political system and address voter apathy by doing things differently. It is piloting its novel approach for the first time in the new six-seat South-East Wales super constituency that combines the former Newport East, Newport West and Islwyn constituencies.

In contrast to existing mainstream political parties, The Open Party is not formed around any particular political ideology, so is not left or right leaning, green or nationalist. Candidates, who are recruited from the public, stand on their own opinions and agenda, rather than a single party policy manifesto.

Richard Hadwin, the Open Party Leader, explains: “To tackle the country’s overwhelming problems, we need much more talent. Approximately 1.5% of the population are political party members, yet we source all our political leaders from this tiny pool. Since the formation of the Senedd in 1999, there has only been one MS elected who was not a party member.

“The fact is we are fishing for our leaders in a political puddle when there is an ocean of talent and experience waiting in the wider society. We have got to start rolling up our sleeves and stepping forward ourselves. The Open Party exists to open up politics to everyone.”

The Open Party strap line is “Our democracy, made better” and, together with opening up politics, it wants to improve democracy across the board by the following measures:

– The Open Party will not operate a party whip. MSs are free to vote on legislation according to their own beliefs.
– Open Party MSs will be free to speak up without having to adhere to party loyalties or the need to avoid sensitive subjects.
– The Open Party will report back to the public objectively on the performance of their MS, as they’ve been chosen by the public and not the party.
– Every Open Party MS faces reselection in a public primary election before the next general election delivering direct accountability to the public.

The party will be running public ‘primary elections’ in January when the voters of Casnewydd Islwyn will be invited to choose the Open Party candidates to be put forward for the Senedd election. Within this team of candidates, there may be a diversity of views, reflecting the different opinions in the constituency, rather than six candidates with the same party manifesto.

Richard Hadwin said: “We want the public to choose the candidates, rather than a party choosing them. In that way, the chosen candidates will reflect the concerns and priorities of the people, and we will have accurate representation with the Senedd engaged on the people’s priorities.

“Choosing the candidates puts voters firmly back in the driving seat. We want to tackle voter apathy with a best fit candidate for everyone, not a perfect fit for just a few.”

Research from the Electoral Reform Society shows that 38% of UK seats have not changed party colours in 50 years or more. Voter apathy is a growing issue, with turnout at the 2024 election down 29% from the post war high of 84%. The Open Party hopes that giving everybody a voice, not just those supporting the dominant party in a constituency, will stop the decline in voter engagement.

Richard Hadwin continued: “Enabling candidates to stand on their own agenda means there will be a true spectrum of Open Party representation reflecting the differing priorities of a diverse nation. Trying to shoehorn the UK into a single policy agenda doesn’t work. Many concerns held by a minority today are the major issues of tomorrow. Everyone’s voice needs to be heard, not just the majority.”

The Open Party is running its first UK pilot in Casnewydd Islwyn, one of Wales’s new 16 super-constituencies created for the 2026 Senedd elections. These larger areas replace the former single-MS constituencies and each now elects six MSs under the new proportional voting system. Casnewydd Islwyn brings together the previous Newport East, Newport West and Islwyn seats, forming a single constituency with around 160,000 voters.

Newport was the home of the Chartist movement in Wales and site of the ‘Newport Rising’. The Chartists were the working-class movement that helped achieve democratic reform in the 1830s, delivering the vote to ordinary working people.

Richard Hadwin said: “The Chartists and the Open Party are separated by nearly 200 years, but united by Newport and the pursuit of democracy. We hope they would recognise the problems with our politics today and approve of our efforts to re-invigorate the democratic system”.

Applications to stand as a candidate for the Open Party in Casnewydd Islwyn are open until 10 December 2025. Anyone legally eligible to stand can apply, including people living outside the constituency. Meanwhile, residents can also shape the process by submitting the questions they want candidates to answer.

If the pilot is well received, the Open Party intends to offer the same model across Wales and the UK in future national elections. To find out more or apply, visit openparty.uk.

Outline timeframes:
10 December 2025 – Deadline for applications to stand as an Open Party candidate in Casnewydd Islwyn.

January 2026 – Public Open Primaries take place, during which every registered voter in Casnewydd Islwyn will be invited to choose up to six Open Party candidates for the 2026 Senedd election.