Ex-deputy calls for Guernsey voting changes for 2025 election

Former Deputy Mary Lowe (left) wants to see change in how deputies are elected

A former Guernsey deputy of 26 years has called for a change in how the island elects deputies.

Mary Lowe warned of a drop in turnout if the States failed to find an alternative system before the 2025 general election.

She lost her seat during the 2020 general election - the first to involve islanders voting for candidates outside their home parish.

Deputy Carl Meerveld said the old parish system had caused "frustration".

Under the new system in 2020, those registered could vote for up to 38 names across the island from a list of 119 candidates.

And Mrs Lowe argued it had left people feeling frustrated because they did not have a named representative for their parish.

'Awful lot of feedback'

She made her comments after participating in the first of two public hearings held by the island's Scrutiny Management Committee.

The hearings are gathering evidence for a review into island wide voting which is scheduled to be published in November.

Mrs Lowe, who held her seat for 26 years, said: "I think the wish of the States is they want to see another island-wide vote before they decide what to do."

But she said there had been "an awful lot of feedback" and if change was to happen it should be "before the next election".

"I predict it will be a lower turnout because there has been unrest and they're going to have to turn it around pretty quickly to get people to be engaged on another island-wide vote," she added.

But Mr Meerveld said of the old system: "There was a lot of frustration... that people couldn't vote for the candidates they wanted to outside their parish."

'Disconnect with officials'

A witness at Monday's hearing labelled island-wide voting as "difficult", while another said the system had caused a "disconnect between the parishes and the elected officials".

Mrs Lowe, meanwhile, said news articles often referred to "a spokesperson" and deputies were "not helping the public to know who to talk to".

She added: "I think that has contributed to the frustration of the island wide voting, that there aren't names around from either a parish, or indeed from presidents, to be able to contact."

A second hearing into the voting system, held by The Scrutiny Management Committee, takes place at 14:00 BST on 4 October at the Castel Douzaine Room.

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