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Jane Dodds standing down as Welsh Liberal Democrats leader
Jane Dodds has been a Senedd member since 2021 and became Welsh Lib Dem leader in 2017
Jane Dodds has announced she will stand down as leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats.
Dodds said she would remain the party's only Member of the Senedd (MS), but that work to increase its presence in Wales' parliament "should be led by a new generation".
"Leading the Welsh Liberal Democrats has been the honour of my life," she said in a statement on Tuesday, adding "now is the right time" to hand over the role.
Only Welsh Lib Dem MP David Chadwick is eligible to seek nomination to replace Dodds at this stage, the party said.
The Liberal Democrats have been represented by just one member in Cardiff Bay since 2016, initially by former Welsh Lib Dem leader Kirsty Williams and later by Dodds since 2021.
Dodds, who represents Brycheiniog Tawe Nedd in the Senedd, is a former social worker who was made her party's Welsh leader in November 2017.
She made headlines last year by getting the previous Welsh Labour government to agree to a greyhound racing ban and £1 bus fares for under-21s in return for helping it pass its budget.
Relations between Dodds and the UK Liberal Democrat leader became strained after Sir Ed Davey called her leadership into question.
Sir Ed asked Dodds to reflect on her position in 2024 over her handling of a sexual abuse case when she worked for the Church in England.