Morgan could rule alone as Labour defeats nationalism

Despite the low turn-out, the Welsh Assembly elections were a triumph for Labour unionism over nationalism, with Plaid Cymru's share of the vote slumping to 12 seats – five fewer than last time.

By gaining 30 out of the 60 seats in the Assembly, the Welsh Labour leader, Rhodri Morgan, found himself in a position to govern alone instead of reverting to the previous coalition with the Liberal Democrats. With the final result Labour 30 seats, Plaid Cymru 12, Conservatives 11, Liberal Democrats 6 and Independent 1, Mr Morgan could manage with a one-seat majority provided that an opposition Assembly member becomes presiding officer, the equivalent of the Commons Speaker. Labour won 28 seats in 1999 and tried going it alone but had to form a coalition with the Liberal Democrats after 18 months. Some feared that traditional Labour politics would lose out to the nationalists, but a turnaround in fortunes saw Labour reclaim two symbolic seats in the South Wales valleys.

The party won Rhondda and Islwyn, traditional red heartlands taken by Plaid Cymru in the inaugural 1999 poll. Leighton Andrews, who ousted Geraint Davies from Rhondda, vowed that Labour would "never again taken Rhondda for granted".

The biggest disappointment of an election in which just 38 per cent of people voted – the lowest turn-out since the Second World War – was felt by Plaid Cymru.

The party paid the price for running a campaign apparently aimed more at consolidating their position than stirring voters with radical new ideas. The party leader, Ieuan Wyn Jones, said: "It has been a disappointing night for us. But what we have got to remember is that Plaid Cymru has not really been in frontline politics for very long – we achieved that in 1999. It's been a difficult transition for us."

By contrast the Welsh Secretary, Peter Hain, was celebrating. "It is a fantastic result," he said. "This is a terrible night for the nationalists. Their fantasy of an independent Wales has been buried for ever.

"We won three-quarters of the constituency seats which by normal general election standards would be a landslide. This is the best result for Labour in the elections anywhere in Britain," he said.

Plaid is considering challenging the results in a number of seats over claims that election leaflets were not delivered.