2026 will bring the first real test of the political temperature at a national level since the General Election in the shape of polls in both Scotland and Wales.
Both the Holyrood and Senedd elections will be fought on new boundaries, but Wales will see the greater shift with a move to proportional representation and a more than 50% increase in the number of Senedd members to 96.
On the ground, voters will be airing concerns about the cost of living, a crisis in housing, under-pressure health services, the environment, social equality and inclusion.
But the national narrative, and real intrigue, will focus on what the elections will tell us about the overall political direction of the country, including:
- A mid-term verdict on Labour’s performance in government
- A test of whether the Conservatives can recover
- An indication as to whether Reform has staying power
- Insight into the SNP’s recovery
- Whether Labour’s dominance in Wales is over
How Polimapper can support your devolved election campaigns
It is against this backdrop that Polimapper is launching its suite of tools to help public affairs and campaign teams to navigate the devolved elections: Holyrood Engage and Senedd Engage.
With these tools you can:
- Build dashboards for each new Senedd constituency, Holyrood constituency and Holyrood region, using localised data to create messages that resonate.
- Use our stakeholder database to identify candidate details and track who’s standing where.
- Mobilise your supporters using our e-action tools to raise awareness of your issues at the right moment.