By: Ivan Wang

Eluned Morgan will soon become Wale’s first minister, and its first ever female leader. She was elected to be the next minister after Vaughan Gething, the minister at the time, said he was resigning on July 16th. As the leader of the Labour Party, Morgan fit the requirements for becoming the first minister. Morgan will officially replace Gething when the Senedd returns from their summer break on August 6.

The response from other Welsh political figures and parties has been mainly positive with Prime Minister, Keir Starmer saying that,”Eluned brings with her a wealth of experience and track record of delivery and, as the first woman to lead Welsh Labour, she is already making history”. Many others said similar things, however a few criticized her with Andrew RT Davies, leader of the Welsh Conservative Party, saying that her performance as health minister did not help improve the state of Wales.

Eluned Morgan was raised in Cardiff and attended Ysgol Glantaf secondary school. Both of her parents were involved with politics, which impacted her life’s trajectory, as she has been a politician for most of her working life. After attending university in Hull, Morgan worked in the field of television before becoming the youngest member of the European Parliament in 1994. Then, in 2011 she became Baroness Morgan of Ely and worked in the House of Lords, before being elected to the Senedd for the Mid and West Wales region in 2016. In 2021, she became the health minister after the Covid-19 pandemic.

Currently, Vaughan Gething is still the first minister at least until Eluned Morgan is confirmed in a vote of the Senedd. This won’t happen until they return because a formal roll call vote requires all 60 members of the Senedd before it can start, with every member saying who they think should be the first minister.

Sources Used: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/c3g02pedgqpo