2017 West of England mayoral election

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.

2017 West of England mayoral election

4 May 2017
Turnout	29.7%
Candidate Tim Bowles Lesley Mansell Stephen Williams Party Conservative Labour Co-op Liberal Democrats 1st Round vote 53,796 43,627 39,794 Percentage 27.3% 22.2% 20.2% 2nd Round vote 70,300 65,923 Eliminated Percentage 51.6% 48.4% Eliminated   Candidate John Savage Darren Hall Aaron Foot Party Independent Green UKIP 1st Round vote 29,500 22,054 8,182 Percentage 15.0% 11.2% 4.2% 2nd Round vote Eliminated Eliminated Eliminated Percentage Eliminated Eliminated Eliminated
Map of the results of the mayoral election by council
Mayor before election Position established Elected Mayor Tim Bowles Conservative

Background

The 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

Bristol 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

Independent 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

Candidates' Transport Infrastructure Debate at the Bristol and Bath Science Park

Six candidates stood in the election.[7]

Conservative Party

Tim Bowles, events company manager, South Gloucestershire councillor.[8]

Green Party

Darren Hall, former RAF engineering officer, project manager, former Parliamentary candidate in Bristol West.[9]

Labour Party

Lesley Mansell, NHS manager, Westfield parish councillor and former Peasedown St John parish councillor.[10]

Liberal Democrats

Stephen Williams, chartered tax consultant, former MP for Bristol West and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.[11]

UK Independence Party

Aaron Foot, farmer, Coleford parish councillor,[12] 2016 candidate for Avon & Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner.

Independent

John 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

Overall

West of England Mayoral Election 2017[15][16]
Party		Candidate	1st round		2nd round			First round votes  Transfer votes
			Total	Of round	Transfers	Total	Of round
	Conservative	Tim Bowles	53,796	27.3%	16,504	70,300	51.6%	​​
	Labour Co-op	Lesley Mansell	43,627	22.2%	22,296	65,923	48.4%	​​
	Liberal Democrats	Stephen Williams	39,794	20.2%				​​
	Independent	John Savage	29,500	15.0%				​​
	Green	Darren Hall	22,054	11.2%				​​
	UKIP	Aaron Foot	8,182	4.2%				​​
Majority						4,377	2.2%
Turnout			196,953	29.7%

Bath and North East Somerset

West of England Mayoral Election 2017 (Bath and North East Somerset)[17]
Party		Candidate	1st round		2nd round			First round votes  Transfer votes
			Total	Of round	Transfers	Total	Of round
	Conservative	Tim Bowles	13,103	32.1%	3,343	16,446	61.2%	​​
	Liberal Democrats	Stephen Williams	10,021	24.6%				​​
	Labour Co-op	Lesley Mansell	6,137	15.0%	4,309	10,446	38.8%	​​
	Independent	John Savage	5,530	13.6%				​​
	Green	Darren Hall	4,398	10.8%				​​
	UKIP	Aaron Foot	1,604	3.9%				​​
Majority						6,000	22.3%
Turnout			40,793	30.5%

Bristol

West of England Mayoral Election 2017 (Bristol)[17]
Party		Candidate	1st round		2nd round			First round votes  Transfer votes
			Total	Of round	Transfers	Total	Of round
	Labour Co-op	Lesley Mansell	29,676	29.6%	13,935	43,611	63.5%	​​
	Liberal Democrats	Stephen Williams	20,675	20.6%				​​
	Conservative	Tim Bowles	18,146	18.1%	6,917	25,063	36.5%	​​
	Independent	John Savage	14,467	14.4%				​​
	Green	Darren Hall	13,857	13.8%				​​
	UKIP	Aaron Foot	3,354	3.3%				​​
Majority						18,548	27.0%
Turnout			100,175	31.1%

South Gloucestershire

West of England Mayoral Election 2017 (South Gloucestershire)[17]
Party		Candidate	1st round		2nd round			First round votes  Transfer votes
			Total	Of round	Transfers	Total	Of round
	Conservative	Tim Bowles	22,547	40.3%	6,244	28,791	70.8%	​​
	Independent	John Savage	9,503	17.0%				​​
	Liberal Democrats	Stephen Williams	9,098	16.3%				​​
	Labour Co-op	Lesley Mansell	7,814	14.0%	4,052	11,866	29.2%	​​
	Green	Darren Hall	3,799	6.8%				​​
	UKIP	Aaron Foot	3,224	5.8%				​​
Majority						16,925	41.6%
Turnout			55,985	27.1%

References

1. "'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.
2. "The West of England Combined Authority Order 2017", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2017/126
3. "Tory Tim Bowles elected West of England mayor". BBC. Archived from the original on 5 May 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
4. 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.
5. "Mayoral Election". West of England Combined Authority. Retrieved 13 February 2017.
6. "Prospective Candidate Information" (PDF). West of England Combined Authority. Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 February 2017. Retrieved 13 February 2017.
7. "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.
8. 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.
9. 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.
10. "Labour candidate for Metro Mayor revealed". Midsomer Norton, Radstock & District Journal. 6 January 2017. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
11. 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.
12. "UKIP's Metro Mayor candidate | North East Somerset UKIP". www.nesukip.org.uk. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
13. "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.
14. "New Canon Treasurer appointed". Bristol Cathedral. 17 February 2014. Archived from the original on 17 March 2017. Retrieved 16 March 2017.
15. "Mayor of the West of England". BBC News. 5 May 2017. Archived from the original on 6 May 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
16. "West of England Combined Authority Mayoral election result". West of England Combined Authority. 5 May 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
17. "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.