With Farage absent, Reform candidate looked neglected and dejected at Caerphilly count

In a by-election successful the birthplace of the comedian Tommy Cooper, it was Plaid Cymru that had the past laugh.

During the campaign, Nigel Farage and Reform UK's campaigner Llyd Powell had posed for photos successful beforehand of the statue of the legendary comic successful Caerphilly.

But erstwhile the effect was declared astatine 2.10am astatine the number successful the town's leisure centre, Mr Farage - who'd been campaigning for Mr Powell connected polling time - was obscurity to beryllium seen.

In fact, the gag among Plaid supporters astatine the number was that agelong earlier the declaration Mr Farage was halfway down the M4 connected his mode backmost to London.

It was 1 of those by-election counts erstwhile arsenic the polls adjacent astatine 10pm 1 enactment - successful this lawsuit Reform UK - is expected to win, but wrong a fewer hours it becomes wide the different enactment looks similar winning.

After all, Reform UK threw everything astatine the campaign, Mr Farage had visited 3 times and a canvass past week had suggested his enactment was up of Plaid Cymru by 42% to 38%.

Plaid's by-election victor Lindsay Whittle, a cheerful extrovert dressed successful a colourful crimson jacket, admitted successful a Sky News interrogation that he'd fought parliamentary and Senedd elections successful Caerphilly unsuccessfully 13 times previously.

If astatine archetypal you don't succeed...

He was chipper from the infinitesimal helium arrived astatine the number adjacent earlier the polls closed, and was intelligibly beauteous assured helium was going to win.

Contrast his assemblage connection with the forlorn fig of Mr Powell, who without Mr Farage oregon Reform UK's Zia Yusuf - who'd been astatine the number for an hr oregon truthful astatine the opening but had near - appeared to get connected his ain and looked neglected by his enactment arsenic good arsenic dejected.

As runner up, mediocre Mr Powell had the accidental to marque a code aft the declaration but chose not to, though immoderate of the different losing candidates did.

This effect is simply a immense boost for Plaid, however, arsenic the enactment aims to prehend power of the Senedd successful elections adjacent year. But it's a large setback for Mr Farage's hopes of making inroads successful Wales.

But for Labour, whose ballot crumbled similar Caerphilly cheese, it's a catastrophe and volition nonstop galore Labour MPs into a panic astir their chances of holding their spot astatine the adjacent wide election.

In the end, for each the speech of the effect being close, it was a comparatively comfy triumph for Plaid, with a bulk of astir 4,000.

In his Sky News interview, Labour's Huw Irranca-Davies, a erstwhile Westminster MP who's present lawman archetypal curate successful Wales, blamed Reform for cranking up migration arsenic an contented successful the run for Labour's slump successful support.

But this effect shows that it isn't lone Reform that poses a menace to Labour, but besides parties connected the near specified arsenic the nationalists.

Caerphilly has sent Labour MPs to Westminster for much than a period and Labour Welsh assembly and Senedd members to Cardiff since devolution began successful 1999.

This was a Labour stronghold arsenic impregnable arsenic Caerphilly's mighty castle. Not immoderate much though, it seems.

The effect volition service arsenic a informing that Labour's dominance successful the valleys and what mightiness beryllium described arsenic "old concern Wales" whitethorn beryllium coming to an end.

And conscionable similar a Tommy Cooper magic instrumentality that goes wrong, that could hap conscionable similar that.