On the 7th May 2026, people in Wales went to the polls to elect a very different Senedd. But it wasn’t just the First Minister who changed; the way we elect all our MSs did too.
For the first time, voters were no longer able to choose between any of the candidates. Instead, they had to vote for a party, and the party decided the order that candidates got elected from its list.
The old Additional Member System had been replaced with a new system called Closed List proportional representation.
Why the new Welsh voting system matters
Elections are not just about who forms the government. They are about accountability: being able to choose, support, and replace the people who represent you.
This new system weakens that link. It may still produce proportional results, but it does so by removing a key democratic choice: the ability for voters to choose individual representatives.
At a time when trust in politics is already fragile, that shift matters. People should have a clear say over who speaks for them in their national parliament – not just which party they support.
There is already a better way
The Expert Panel on Assembly Electoral Reform and a Senedd committee both recommended an alternative: the Single Transferable Vote (STV).
STV is already used successfully for decades in Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Scottish local elections.
It works differently. Instead of choosing just one party, voters rank candidates in order of preference: 1, 2, 3 and so on.
That means you can vote for the person you most want to represent you, and if your first choice does not win, your vote can still count. It means more power for voters, not less.
Crucially, STV keeps proportional results while restoring voter’s ability to choose individual candidates on their personal merits.
We can change this
The law that introduced the new system includes a built-in review mechanism that could only be triggered after the 2026 election.
Whether it happens will depend on the new Senedd and the commitments of political parties.
ERS Cymru is calling for that review to be used – so the system can be properly assessed, and assessed and improved where necessary.
The opportunity in front of Wales
The 2026 election marks a major moment in Welsh democracy. Wales now faces a simple choice: Do we keep a system where parties decide who gets elected from their lists? Or do we move to a system like STV, where voters have real control over who represents them?
ERS Cymru believes voters should have that control.
And that the next step for Wales should be clear: a review of the system – and a move towards the Single Transferable Vote.