Islanders to choose Chief Minister?

Saturday 26 August 2017

A States deputy wants the rules changed so that voters will have more of a say in who’s elected Chief Minister.

But, under proposals being put forward by Deputy Russell Labey, voters won’t have it all their own way. What he’s come up with is something of a halfway house, and is likely to cost around £30,000.

At the moment, shortly after the general election, politicians meet and choose who they want for Chief Minister. The public doesn’t have a say. Critics say this is undemocratic, and that it should be islanders who decide. Deputy Labey’s plan attempts to put this right.

Under the plan after the election States members who want to be Chief Minister would put their names forward, and there would be a vote in the Chamber. There are 49 members, and what Deputy Labey is saying is if two candidates get 18 or more votes each there would be another election about a week later in which the public would get to choose between the prospective Chief Ministers. It is mathematically impossible to have three candidates with 18 votes.

But, there is the possibility of course that one candidate could be so popular amongst States members that no other candidate reaches the 18 vote threshold, in which case he or she would automatically be elected and there would be no public vote.

Pictured: Islanders could get to cast a vote on the next Chief Minister.

There is also - although perhaps extremely unlikely – possibility of there being three candidates who poll 17 – 16 – 16. Here Deputy Labey says there would be another round of States voting. That could lead to a number of outcomes: only one candidate reaches 18 and is elected; two reach 18 and there is a public vote off; or things stay the same. If the latter were to happen the two who’d polled 16 would go head to head, and the winner of that would go head to head with the candidate that had polled 17. That might result in an outright winner, or a public vote.

Deputy Labey says this is a ‘last chance saloon’ attempt to engage islanders in politics, and to make people feel their vote really counts, and that they can influence events.

Recently Deputy Labey also put forward the suggestion that voting for Chief Minister should be by secret ballot. The States will debate the propositions when they meet in September.