LABOUR will lead the government in Wales for a fifth straight term despite falling short of an overall majority after the shock loss of a heartland seat.

Carwyn Jones remains First Minister after Labour took 29 of 60 Assembly seats with 35 per cent of the constituency votes.

That is down one on the high point of 2011 after Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood won the Rhondda with a 20 per cent swing from experienced Labour minister Leighton Andrews.

Ms Wood heralded a “new dawn” for the Rhondda and said it “surely marks a new beginning and, I hope, a new Wales.”

But it was the only constituency to change hands across Wales as Labour exceeded poll expectations to hold Llanelli against Plaid, Cardiff Central against the Lib Dems and, against the Tories, Cardiff North and the Vale of Clwyd, which both went blue at last May’s Westminster election.

Mr Jones hailed “encouraging” results in the party’s head-to-heads with the Tories and British Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn praised the party’s “excellent” results.

Wales also has its first openly gay AMs after Unite officer and former LGBT Labour chair Hannah Blythyn won Delyn and Jeremy Miles won Neath.

But Wales also woke up to find Ukip had won representation for the first time. Former Tory MPs Neil Hamilton and Mark Reckless were among seven Ukip candidates elected.

The Liberal Democrats, who dominated Welsh politics at the turn of the last century, have been reduced from five AMs to one.

The remaining AM, Kirsty Williams, resigned as Welsh Lib Dem leader yesterday.

And the Greens fell well short of the numbers needed to win their first regional list seat, finishing behind the Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party.

The Welsh Communist Party won 2,452 votes across the four regions, ahead of the Trade Union and Socialist Coalition on 2,040.