Katy Bourne elected as Sussex PCC for the third time

Katy Bourne won with a total of 244,810 votes

Katy Bourne has been re-elected as the police and crime commissioner (PCC) for Sussex.

The Conservative candidate has been the county's PCC since the role was first introduced in 2012.

She won a 47.3% share of the vote in the first round, then beat Labour's Paul Richards in a second round run-off.

It is the third time the former district councillor and businesswoman has been elected into the role.

Speaking after the results were announced, an "extremely honoured" Ms Bourne said: "It is a responsibility that I take very seriously and I'm looking forward to getting back to work."

Turnout was 35.77%, which was up on the 2016 election

Ms Bourne won with a total of 244,810 votes, 116,000 votes ahead of her closest rival, Mr Richards.

Ms Bourne said she will make sure Sussex Police addresses the government's new policing measures to tackle the most serious crimes.

She pledged to "drive a relentless focus" on tackling anti-social behaviour, rural crime - including pet theft - and to make the roads safer for residents.

Her consultations with parishes and districts, county-wide surveys and focus groups to listen to people's concerns and ideas begin this week, she added.

Turnout was 35.77%, which was up on the 2016 election.

Analysis

By Ben Weisz, Political Reporter, BBC Sussex

Katy Bourne's victory was no shock - but she won more of the vote than 2016, no mean feat after two terms in office.

It also bucked the trend across the South East where - with a few notable exceptions - the Conservatives lost vote share to their opposition.

The former businesswoman has built a profile as a police and crime commissioner - chairing the national association, and piloting projects in Sussex around video enabled justice and victims of stalking.

She has spoken of using a third term to tackle rural crime, target domestic abuse involving knives, and better protect Sussex's businesses.

But violent crime is rising across Sussex. Black people in Sussex are ten times more likely to be stopped and searched than white people. And the controversial suggestion of giving PCC's like Katy Bourne control of local fire services is being raised once again.

A third term will be far from plain sailing - getting elected may prove the easy part.

Also running was Jamie Bennett for the Liberal Democrats, Kahina Bouhassane for the Green Party and Roy Williams, an independent.

The PCC elections were due to be held in May 2020 but were delayed by the pandemic.

POLICE AND CRIME COMMISSIONERS: THE BASICS

What's happening? On May 6, most people in England will vote for police and crime commissioners. There are 39 across in England.

What do they do? They are the public face of policing with the power to hire and fire chief constables, acting as a voice for the community, and managing police budgets.