After his handling of Covid, even hard-nosed colleagues marvel at the Welsh first minister’s popularity
There is a strong argument that the British politician whose reputation has been most enhanced by the challenges of the past 18 months is Mark Drakeford.
Despite having played a prominent role in devolved Welsh politics for almost two decades before that, at the time of his elevation to the role of Welsh Labour leader and first minister in December 2018, this unassuming west Walian remained largely unknown to the public. Even a year later, the low profile accorded to him in his party’s 2019 general election campaign suggests he was not regarded as an electoral asset.
