Wales is preparing for a third First Minister since the establishment of the Senedd two months ago, as /u/EponaCorcra resigned her position as the head of the governing Labour-Plaid Cymru coalition.

In a busy night in Wales, where polls were released showing gains of two per cent for the Welsh Tories and Welsh Labour, the former First Minister announced through unofficial channels that she was leaving politics for the foreseeable future.

After becoming the leader of Welsh Labour, /u/EponaCorcra left a fledgling WLA-Labour coalition after the retirement of /u/redwolf177, citing the switch of WLA leader - and therefore the coalition choice for First Minister - as the reason for forming a new coalition with Plaid Cymru.

The Deputy Leader of Welsh Labour /u/ARichTeaBiscuit said in a statement on Twitter yesterday, "I wish the outgoing First Minister all the best as she makes the decision to step down from political life for the time being."

When contacted by the Model Times on rumours that Labour plan to continue its coalition with Plaid Cymru, she said, "Welsh Labour and Plaid Cymru are currently working on an arrangement that will see the continuation of the current coalition." This statement was backed up by the Plaid Cymru leader /u/ViktorHR who said, "We're looking at continuing our cooperation with Welsh Labour and hopefully [/u/EponaCorcra's resignation] will not be a major setback."

Now the Senedd faces a prospect of a third First Ministerial election, in addition to the two coalition formation periods, which has a corollary effect of ensuring Assembly Members cannot debate new motions or legislation. To date, the Senedd has only debated five submissions, partly due to the Westminster general election and repeated stoppages as AMs debate and elect a First Minister.

/u/ViktorHR described this situation as "unfortunate" before adding, "I will do all that is in my ability to ensure another FM election does not happen until the end of this term." This sentiment was echoed by /u/ARichTeaBiscuit, who said, "I am committed to ensuring that the Senedd has active and stable representation and I will do everything in my power to assure that the business of the Senedd remains uninterrupted until the next assembly election."

On /u/EponaCorcra's resignation, Welsh Liberal leader /u/wagbo_ told the Times, "Whilst I made my opposition to her undemocratic appointment very clear, and had no shred of confidence in her government, I was hoping that the Welsh people could at least have a short period of stability," before adding that he "will be standing for First Minister once more". When pressed on the likelihood of victory for the largest party in the Senedd, he conceded it to be "unlikely".

Neither Plaid Cymru nor the Labour Party indicated who they'd support in the forthcoming election for First Minister, but /u/ARichTeaBiscuit did tell the Times that she personally had no plans to stand for First Minister.