27,316 people have signed up to vote in Guernsey’s 2025 election.
That is around 3,000 fewer than signed up to have their say when the island went to the polls last time.
That vote in October 2020 was the first time a fully island wide poll had been held, after a referendum in 2018 showed that it was the preferred election option for a majority of would-be voters.
The team who run Guernsey’s electoral roll have been encouraging those over the age of 16 to sign up to it since late last year.
Colette Falla, Registrar-General of Electors, said there was a last minute rush with around 2,000 people signing up over the last week, before registrations closed on Wednesday night.
“It was positive to see that number signing up to the Electoral Roll continued to climb quickly in the final days of the sign-up period. We tried hard to make the process of signing-up as easy as possible, and our outreach team was out and about on an almost daily basis for several months, to ensure that the electoral roll was on everyone’s minds.
“Forms for candidate nominations are now available ahead of the nomination period, starting on the 12 May.”
Guernsey’s population was estimated at 64,781 at the end of last year, meaning fewer than half have signed up to vote.
With a ‘working age population’ of around 32,000 people (not including those who don’t work or are retired) it’s clear that thousands of eligible voters have not registered.
In March 2020, the island’s population was estimated at 63,155 and 30,899 people registered to vote with 79.70% turnout at the October election.
Of those who have registered to vote in this summer’s election, the best represented age group is those people aged between 60 and 64, closely followed by those in the late 50s.
Those who are on the electoral roll will be able to vote in June when the polls open in the 2025 election.
Candidates must themselves be on the electoral roll, along with the people who nominate and second them.
Nomination forms for candidates are available to download at election2025.gg and paper copies can be collected from the Bailiff’s office.
Candidate Guidance is also available at election2025.gg with essential information and key dates that prospective candidates should make themselves aware of, including electoral spending limits, data protection responsibilities, and guidelines for the manifesto booklet.
Candidate nominations open on 12 May 2025 at 09:00, and close at 16:30 on 14 May 2025, after which date the full list will be published by Express and elsewhere.
The election takes place on 18 June.