The inaugural West of England mayoral election was held on 4 May 2017 to elect the Mayor of the West of England metropolitan area. The area is made up of Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol and South Gloucestershire.[1] Subsequent elections will be held every four years.[2] The election was won by Conservative Tim Bowles.[3] The overall turnout for the election was low, with only 29.7% of the electorate voting.
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| Turnout | 29.7% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Map of the results of the mayoral election by council | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Background
editThe election coincided with the creation of the West of England Combined Authority, made up of the Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol and South Gloucestershire council areas. North Somerset was not part of the Combined Authority, as its council voted against the devolution deal in June 2016.[4]
Procedure
editBristol City Council acted as the Combined Authority Returning Officer.[5] Formal nominations to stand could be made from 28 March 2017 to 4 April 2017.[6]
This election used the supplementary voting system, with electors having two votes. One vote for the first choice candidate, with an optional vote for a second choice candidate used if no candidate has more than 50% of the first choice votes.[5][7]
Campaign
editIndependent John Savage proposed the development of a "super tram network" for the Combined Authority if elected, as part of a larger public transport policy. He also pledged to write to Channel 4 to ask the channel to consider moving to the West of England. Labour candidate Lesley Mansell promised greater protection for private tenants against "unscrupulous" landlords and 4,000 new homes a year. Conservative Tim Bowles pledged to build more affordable homes and protect the green belt. Liberal Democrat candidate Stephen Williams launched a range of policies with Vince Cable, including rolling out broadband to the region's villages and getting rid of the Severn Bridge toll. Bowles, Mansell and Williams all advocated making the region attractive for business. UKIP's Aaron Foot promised to build an online direct democracy platform and to "end the war on motorists".[4]
Candidates
edit
Six candidates stood in the election.[7]
Conservative Party
editTim Bowles, events company manager, South Gloucestershire councillor.[8]
Green Party
editDarren Hall, former RAF engineering officer, project manager, former Parliamentary candidate in Bristol West.[9]
Labour Party
editLesley Mansell, NHS manager, Westfield parish councillor and former Peasedown St John parish councillor.[10]
Liberal Democrats
editStephen Williams, chartered tax consultant, former MP for Bristol West and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.[11]
UK Independence Party
editAaron Foot, farmer, Coleford parish councillor,[12] 2016 candidate for Avon & Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner.
Independent
editJohn Savage, businessman, chair of University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and Bristol Chamber of Commerce and Initiative, treasurer of Bristol Cathedral, 2012 Labour candidate for Avon & Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner.[13][14]
Results
editOverall
edit| West of England Mayoral Election 2017[15][16] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st round | 2nd round | 1st round votesTransfer votes, 2nd round | ||||
| Total | Of round | Transfers | Total | Of round | ||||
| Conservative | Tim Bowles | 53,796 | 27.3% | 16,504 | 70,300 | 51.6% |
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| Labour Co-op | Lesley Mansell | 43,627 | 22.2% | 22,296 | 65,923 | 48.4% |
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| Liberal Democrats | Stephen Williams | 39,794 | 20.2% |
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| Independent | John Savage | 29,500 | 15.0% |
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| Green | Darren Hall | 22,054 | 11.2% |
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| UKIP | Aaron Foot | 8,182 | 4.2% |
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| Majority | 4,377 | 2.2% | ||||||
| Turnout | 196,953 | 29.7% | ||||||
By local authority
editBath and North East Somerset
edit| West of England Mayoral Election 2017 (Bath and North East Somerset)[17] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st round | 2nd round | 1st round votesTransfer votes, 2nd round | ||||
| Total | Of round | Transfers | Total | Of round | ||||
| Conservative | Tim Bowles | 13,103 | 32.1% | 3,343 | 16,446 | 61.2% |
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| Liberal Democrats | Stephen Williams | 10,021 | 24.6% |
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| Labour Co-op | Lesley Mansell | 6,137 | 15.0% | 4,309 | 10,446 | 38.8% |
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| Independent | John Savage | 5,530 | 13.6% |
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| Green | Darren Hall | 4,398 | 10.8% |
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| UKIP | Aaron Foot | 1,604 | 3.9% |
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| Majority | 6,000 | 22.3% | ||||||
| Turnout | 40,793 | 30.5% | ||||||
Bristol
edit| West of England Mayoral Election 2017 (Bristol)[17] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st round | 2nd round | 1st round votesTransfer votes, 2nd round | ||||
| Total | Of round | Transfers | Total | Of round | ||||
| Labour Co-op | Lesley Mansell | 29,676 | 29.6% | 13,935 | 43,611 | 63.5% |
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| Liberal Democrats | Stephen Williams | 20,675 | 20.6% |
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| Conservative | Tim Bowles | 18,146 | 18.1% | 6,917 | 25,063 | 36.5% |
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| Independent | John Savage | 14,467 | 14.4% |
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| Green | Darren Hall | 13,857 | 13.8% |
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| UKIP | Aaron Foot | 3,354 | 3.3% |
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| Majority | 18,548 | 27.0% | ||||||
| Turnout | 100,175 | 31.1% | ||||||
South Gloucestershire
edit| West of England Mayoral Election 2017 (South Gloucestershire)[17] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st round | 2nd round | 1st round votesTransfer votes, 2nd round | ||||
| Total | Of round | Transfers | Total | Of round | ||||
| Conservative | Tim Bowles | 22,547 | 40.3% | 6,244 | 28,791 | 70.8% |
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| Independent | John Savage | 9,503 | 17.0% |
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| Liberal Democrats | Stephen Williams | 9,098 | 16.3% |
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| Labour Co-op | Lesley Mansell | 7,814 | 14.0% | 4,052 | 11,866 | 29.2% |
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| Green | Darren Hall | 3,799 | 6.8% |
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| UKIP | Aaron Foot | 3,224 | 5.8% |
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| Majority | 16,925 | 41.6% | ||||||
| Turnout | 55,985 | 27.1% | ||||||
References
edit- ^ "'Metro mayor' to run new West of England authority". ITV. 15 November 2016. Archived from the original on 27 November 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
- ^ "The West of England Combined Authority Order 2017", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2017/126
- ^ "Tory Tim Bowles elected West of England mayor". BBC. Archived from the original on 5 May 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
- ^ a b Ashcroft, Esme (7 April 2017). "What have the Metro Mayor candidates promised so far?". Archived from the original on 26 December 2017. Retrieved 26 December 2017.
- ^ a b "Mayoral Election". West of England Combined Authority. Retrieved 13 February 2017.
- ^ "Prospective Candidate Information" (PDF). West of England Combined Authority. Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 February 2017. Retrieved 13 February 2017.
- ^ a b "West of England Combined Authority Mayoral Election" (PDF). Bristol: Combined Authority Returning Officer. April 2017. BD9104. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 April 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
- ^ Alex Brown (23 January 2017). "Tim Bowles named Conservative Party candidate for West of England Metro Mayor elections". Bath Chronicle. Archived from the original on 26 January 2017. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
- ^ Ashcroft, Esme (5 April 2017). "Metro Mayor candidate profile: Darren Hall for Green Party". Bristol Post. Archived from the original on 19 September 2017. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- ^ "Labour candidate for Metro Mayor revealed". Midsomer Norton, Radstock & District Journal. 6 January 2017. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- ^ Ashcroft, Esme (2 May 2017). "Who are the Metro Mayor candidates you can vote for in Bristol, South Gloucestershire and B&NES?". Bristol Post. Archived from the original on 8 May 2017. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
- ^ "UKIP's Metro Mayor candidate | North East Somerset UKIP". www.nesukip.org.uk. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
- ^ "Metro mayor independent launches campaign | News | Bristol 24/7". Bristol 24/7. 14 March 2017. Archived from the original on 14 March 2017. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
- ^ "New Canon Treasurer appointed". Bristol Cathedral. 17 February 2014. Archived from the original on 17 March 2017. Retrieved 16 March 2017.
- ^ "Mayor of the West of England". BBC News. 5 May 2017. Archived from the original on 6 May 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
- ^ "West of England Combined Authority Mayoral election result". West of England Combined Authority. 5 May 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
- ^ a b c "West of England Combined Authority Mayoral election result - bristol.gov.uk". www.bristol.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 9 April 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2018.