History has been made at Pembrokeshire County Council with Cllr Tessa Hodgson elected as the new Leader of the Local Authority.

Cllr Hodgson was elected as Leader at the Annual General Meeting of Council held on Friday, May 15 and succeeds Cllr Jon Harvey who did not seek re-election as Leader.

Cllr Hodgson is the first female Leader of Pembrokeshire County Council and represents the Lamphey Ward.

Cllr Hodgson said: “It is a great honour to have been elected Leader of Pembrokeshire County Council. I thank Cllrs Tinley and Clements for also putting themselves forward and Cllrs Alderman and Williams for proposing and seconding me.

“It is an important moment for the Council to elect the first woman to this position but now the hard work begins.

“I am prepared to work with everyone across the chamber for the benefit of every resident and community of Pembrokeshire and I look forward to the challenges and opportunities ahead.”

Cllr Hodgson was first elected in 2012 and is not affiliated to any group on the Council.

In 2017 Cllr Hodgson took on the role of Cabinet Member for Social Services and Safeguarding and most recently held the position of Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Safeguarding.

With a background in marketing and business, Cllr Hodgson has run several enterprises in the hospitality and tourism sector.

The leader of the council is elected every two years under the council’s constitution, and leader Cllr Jon Harvey had decided not to stand for re-election.

Pembroke St Mary North member Cllr Harvey became leader in May 2024 after narrowly beating fellow leadership hopeful Conservative group leader Di Clements by 30 votes to 27.

Cllr Harvey replaced Cllr David Simpson as leader.

The May 2026 leadership role will be held for one year, ahead of the 2027 council elections where the 2026 incumbent may, or may not, keep the role.

Two secret ballots were held, with 30 votes out of the 59 members present needed to secure a win.

During the first round, Cllr Hodgson gained 28 votes, Cllr Tinley 20, and Clements 11, Cllr Clements being eliminated for the second round.

That round saw Cllr Hodgson triumph by one vote: 30 to Cllr Tinley’s 29.

Accepting the role, Cllr Hodgson also paid tribute to her colleagues and to, poignantly, her mother and late father, Cllr Viv Stoddart and former councillor Mike Stoddart for “their long record of public service,” and for their “always fair and unwavering support and guidance”.

Cllr Hodgson has not yet announced her new Cabinet portfolios, the Cabinet remaining unchanged for now other than a vacancy following the news Cabinet Member for Education and Welsh Language Cllr Guy Woodham is to step down from his role.

The AGM also saw Cllr Delme Harries unanimously elected as council chair for the forthcoming year, replacing Cllr Maureen Bowen, and Cllr Nick Neumann elected as Deputy Presiding Member/Vice-Chair, beating Cllr Bethan Price by 34 votes to 24.

Cllr Simon Hancock will continue to serve as Presiding Member.