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Introduction
How to have your say
How the 2020 election worked
Examples of previous Scrutiny reviews
Background information
Media
Introduction
The Scrutiny Management Committee has launched a review of Island Wide Voting and is asking for input from the public by close of business on 24 March 2023. Now extended to 7 April 2023.
Island Wide Voting was introduced for the first time at the 2020 general election on 7 October 2020 after a public referendum in 2018. Instead of voting by district, voters could select from all of the candidates across the island, casting up to 38 votes. In 2020 there were 119 candidates to choose from.
Scrutiny now wants to assess how well the new system performed. The findings will not impact the 2025 election but could alter subsequent elections.
Deputy Yvonne Burford, President of the Scrutiny Management Committee, said: ‘My committee considers that such a substantial change to the way we elect our government should be reviewed and feedback from the community should be sought in order to inform the operation of general elections beyond 2025. We want to hear from the public and all interested parties’.
How to have your say
There are no guidelines as to what headings to use or questions to answer when making our submission. You have free rein to say whatever you feel would be useful to the Scrutiny panel.
Clearly mark your submission with your name and contact details. Anonymous submissions won’t be considered.
Your views may be published in the final report. If you’d rather not have your name associated with them, mark your evidence ‘Private and Confidential’ and give an explanation as to why.
Submit your feedback by e-mail to scrutiny@gov.gg – in Word or PDF. Deadline is close of business on 7 April 2023.
Read the ‘Call for evidence’ guidance for more information.
How the 2020 election worked
Candidates got a grant of £500 from the States and could spend up to £6,000 on their campaign.
The States produced a combined manifesto booklet, with two pages allocated to each candidate. This was delivered to every household.
The election2020.gg website (still available, although only elected candidates are included now) displayed contact details, photo, manifesto and a video for each candidate.
The States arranged a ‘Meet the Candidates event’ at Beau Sejour on the Sunday ten days before the election.
There were no official hustings. Groups of candidates got together and put on their own hustings.
Registered political parties were permitted. Party members could contribute up to £3000 of their £6000 spending limit towards party campaign expenses. Party campaign expenses could not exceed £9,000.
Three political parties registered – the Guernsey Party, the Partnership of Independents and the Alliance Party. One group of deputies advertised together but did not form a party (the so-called ‘Van Party’).
Some candidates canvassed door-to-door. Some candidates posted, or door-dropped, manifesto leaflets, often collectively with others. Some put up posters. Some used social media. Some advertised in the Press/Bailiwick Express.
Two super-polling stations were available for use the weekend before the election, and again on the day before the election and election day itself.
Parish polling stations were available on the day before the election and election day itself.
Postal voting was available (and was well-used – 21,000 people registered which was more than 10 times as many as 2016).
The count took place at Beau Sejour and the result was announced at approximately 1am.
Examples of previous Scrutiny reviews
Freedom of Information Review – Aug 2020
Review of the Capital Allocation Process – June 2020
In-work Poverty Review – November 2018
Background information
Information for prospective candidates
Wikipedia – 2020 Guernsey general election
First policy letter – describes new election process
Second policy letter – includes costs of election and recount
Policy letter in response to the election observers and registrar-general’s reports.
Election observers report on the 2020 election
Registrar-general’s report on the 2020 election
Referendum policy letter from 2017
Media
Meerveld – ‘most people happy with island-wide voting system’ (8 Feb 2023, Guernsey Press)
Public invited to have their say on island-wide voting (2 Feb 2023, Guernsey Press)
Guernsey election 2020: Island-wide vote ‘successful’ (7 Dec 2020, BBC Guernsey)
Susan Taylor letter: How much did this election costs to run? (16 Oct 2020, Guernsey Press)
Guernsey election 2020: Results (11 Oct 2020, BBC Guernsey)
Election recount will take place, after request from four unsuccessful candidates (9 Oct 2020, Guernsey Press)
Guernsey Election: 21,000 people register for postal voting (28 Sep 2020, ITV Channel TV)
Guernsey’s 2020 election ‘will be the strangest in the world’ (15 Feb 2020, BBC Guernsey)
Guernsey referendum: Voters back island-wide system (11 Oct 2018, BBC Guernsey)
