Vaughan’s history making victory

Vaughan Gething has been declared winner of the Cardiff South and Penarth seat for the National Assembly for Wales making history as its first Black Assembly Member of African origin. Gething won the seat with 50% of the vote, garnering a massive 13814, almost double that of his nearest rival.

Gething was born in Zambia in 1974 to a black Zambian mother and a white Welsh father, a vet who had moved there to work.

Brought up in rural Dorset from the age of two, Gething was educated in Aberystwyth and Cardiff, and went on to become a solicitor, the first Black president of the Welsh NUS and the first Black president of the Welsh TUC.

He joined the Labour party at the age of 17 to help out with the 1992 election, he chaired the ‘Right to Vote’ campaign – a cross party project set up to encourage greater participation from BME communities in Welsh public life – between 1999 2001. Recently he served on Cardiff council as a Councillor between 2004 – 2008.

OBV’s Director Simon Woolley stated “This is an excellent result. I’ve known and worked with Vaughan for over a decade. It’s hard to find a politician who is more dedicated to the pursuit of social and racial equality. He is a great credit to his party, Wales and the Black community.

Our commiserations to Elizabeth Musa of Plaid Cymru. She put up a good fight, and I’m sure she’ll be back to fight again soon.”