Internal Party Elections

Our party is run by members, for members. Whether it’s our leader, members of party committees or the teams that run your local party, everyone is elected by other members.

On this page you can find out about current elections, how you can stand, and how you can nominate other members.

This page covers:

  • Which roles are currently open for application?
  • Who is eligible to apply?
  • How do I apply?
  • How do I show my support for applicants?
  • What happens next?

Which roles are currently open for application?

Elections for committee places were held towards the end of 2022. We are currently inviting applications to fill positions that remain vacant.

Party Officers

Party Officers are lead members for one of the party’s functions and sit as members on several committees.

Current vacancies:

Welsh Party Committee Members

Ordinary Committee Members are elected by members to represent them on party committees while the Representative from Local Government on the Policy Development Committee is elected by our elected councillors.

Current Vacancies:

Representatives to Federal Party Committees

To ensure that the whole of the country are represented within the Federal Party’s decision making, the Welsh Party has a representative on Federal Party Committees. The representative is responsible for ensuring that the decisions taken by the Federal Party take account of Wales and the Welsh Party.

Current Vacancies:

Members of Party Appeals Panels

The Appeals Panels of both the Welsh and Federal Parties are there to adjudicate on disputes within the party that are not the responsibility of the party’s independent complaints process e.g. when a member of a local party believes that their rights under the party constitution have been infringed.

Current Vacancies:

  • Member of the Welsh Appeals Panel (9 vacancies)
  • Welsh Representative to the Federal Appeals Panel (1 vacancies)

Who is eligible to apply?

Any member of the Welsh Liberal Democrats is eligible to put their names forward for any of the vacancies, except for the Local Government Representative on the Policy Development Committee and members of Appeals Panels.

Only elected councillors sitting as Liberal Democrats are eligible to stand for the Local Government Representative on the Policy Development Committee.

Members of the Senedd, Prospective Senedd or Parliamentary Candidates, Members of the Welsh Party Board or the Campaigns and Communications Committee, and employees of the Party are not eligible to stand for either the Welsh or Federal Appeals Panels. Any other member may apply.

How do I apply?

Any member wishing to stand for election must complete an application form.

Application forms can be downloaded and can be returned by email or through the post.

Download an Application Form (Microsoft Word)

Download an Application Form (PDF)

Members who are applying for some roles will need support from other party members for their application to be accepted. The number of supporters required varies depending on the seniority of the role:

  • Applicants for Ordinary Committee Members and Representatives to Federal Party Committees require the support of any 5 members of the party.
  • Applicants for Local Government Representative to the Policy Development Committee require the support of 5 elected Liberal Democrat councillors.
  • Applicants for Party Officer roles and members of Appeals Panels do not need support for their application to be accepted.

Information on how party members can show their support is provided below. Applicants may ask other members who they know and have contact details for to support their application by email, telephone or social media. However, applicants must not use mass communication methods (e.g. bulk emails) nor use data from party databases to get hold of contact details of other members.

People employed by any branch of the Liberal Democrats should not be asked to support any applicant. Staff must remain neutral during this process as they must work with whoever is elected.

The deadline for submitting application forms is mid-day on Friday 5th January 2024, while members have until mid-day on Monday 8th January 2024 to register their support for applicants.

How do I show my support for applicants?

If you wish to show your support for an applicant in these internal party elections you need to register your support using our online portal, or download, print off, complete and return a paper form.

Only Party members may register their support for applicants. You will need to know the name of your Local Party and your Party Membership number to register your support. Your Local Party's name is usually the name of the county or constituency you live in, while you can find your membership number on most communications from the party. If you need assistance please email elgan.morgan@libdems.wales.

Online Portal

Download a form (Microsoft Word) for printing

Download a form (PDF) for printing

You may only support one applicant for each vacancy i.e. if there is only one vacancy then you may only support one applicant, if however there are three vacancies for a committee then you may support up to three people. Any subsequent registrations of support will be ignored.

The deadline for registering your support for applicants is mid-day on Monday 8th January 2024.

What happens next?

When the deadline for applications pass we will inform members of who has applied and received the required level of support.

If the number of applicants exceeds the number of vacancies, or if an election is required by the constitution, a vote will take place. Otherwise applicants will be deemed elected.

If you have any questions or would like to raise any issues regarding the conduct of these elections please contact the Welsh Party's Acting Operations Director, Elgan Morgan, by emailing elgan.morgan@libdems.wales