Clatworthy beat the Labour party’s Gary Chappell into second place by just 30 votes.
The by-election followed the resignation of councillor Mike Kearn, who had been the Labour councillor for the ward since 2017 and had stepped down for personal reasons.
“I’m honoured to have been elected as Councillor for Pyle, Kenfig Hill & Cefn Cribwr. Thank you to everyone who backed change. I’m here to listen, serve, and deliver for our community. Let’s build a ward that works for everyone.
“Winning this seat is only the beginning. We will stand candidates in every seat in Bridgend in 2027. I will work hard for every one living in this community. Reform UK listens to what people actually want and we will always put their priorities first. The work begins now.”
Clatworthy becomes the second Reform county councillor to be elected in Wales after Stuart Kyle beat Labour to fill a vacancy on Torfaen Council in February.
Pyle, Kenfig Hill and Cefn Cribwr has long been a Labour stronghold. The only time a candidate from someone other than Labour has won a seat in the area was Plaid Cymru’s Kevin Burnell, who won the Cefn Cribwr ward in 1999.
Former Plaid Cymru UK Parliament candidate, Rhys Watkins stood as an Independent and came third, pushing Plaid’s official candidate, Amy Moss into fourth place.
The Conservatives came a lowly fifth with just 55 votes, just one more than the Green Party.
The full results of the by-election for Pyle, Kenfig Hill & Cefn Cribwr were:
Owain Clatworthy (Reform) – 697 votes
Gary Chappell (Labour) – 667 votes
Rhys Watkins (Independent) – 351 votes
Amy Moss (Plaid Cymru) – 154 votes
Byron John Davies (Conservatives) – 55 votes
Debra Ann Cooper (Green) – 54 votes
