Make your vote count, say bishops

Reuters

Bishops in Wales are encouraging people to get out and vote on election day.

The May 6 elections are the first time that anyone over the age of 16 can vote in the Welsh Senedd elections. 

The bishops said the elections were "an opportunity to shape the values and priorities for Wales into the future". 

"And it comes at a time when the impact of the Welsh Government has been more visible than ever before due to its response to the Covid-19 pandemic," they said.

The bishops, from the Church in Wales, also spoke of the "responsibility" to vote for the welfare of the common good. 

"Voting is the foundation of living in a democracy – it is our hard won right. It is also our responsibility," the bishops said.

"It is our responsibility to vote well – that doesn't mean voting for a particular person or party without thought but to vote in an informed way.

"Take time to read the manifestoes, to talk to the candidates and even question them in some of the many online hustings events taking place.

"If we don't take our vote seriously we have no one but ourselves to blame when things go wrong."