Deputy Lindsay de Sausmarez’s election success

The final place up for grabs in the election may have only been decided by 21 votes, but things were much clearer at the top of the table.

Deputy Lindsay de Sausmarez secured 1,300 votes more than second placed fellow incumbent Deputy Yvonne Burford.

A further 1,000 votes separated Deputy Burford from the following eight successful candidates.

Further down the polls, just 388 votes separated the bottom five elected into the States, and just 739 separated the bottom 10. 

With 19,686 people voting in this election, more than half of them filled in the oval next to Deputy de Sausmarez’s name.

The incumbent President of the Environment and Infrastructure committee is the first female poll topper in an island wide election, having come 21st last time round with 8,645 votes.

In 2020, Deputy Heidi Soulsby came second – just over a thousand votes behind the then-poll topper Deputy Gavin St Pier.

Deputy de Sausmarez was giddy with surprise as the results were read out on Thursday.

Questions soon followed for the poll topper on what her dominant display at the ballot boxes says, what role she might go for in the next States, and whether she’ll be the first female politician to take on the top job.

The numbers compared to last election

The gap between Deputy de Sausmarez’s victory (by 1,294 votes) and that of Deputy Gavin St Pier’s back in 2020  (by 1,148) is 146 in favour of the new poll topper. 

However the smaller electoral roll means 54.46% of voters cast their ballot for Deputy de Sausmarez compared to 56.55% for Deputy St Pier at the last election.

What was apparent on the night was Deputy de Sausmarez surprise at a victory, let alone one by such a grand margin. 

Speaking to Express, she said she hadn’t expected it at all.

“Not in a million years. No, I had absolutely no sense of how it was going. Under the district system, you had a much more direct sense of feedback there, because you were able to knock on a really good proportion of the district’s doors and speak to quite a lot of people. 

“So I think most candidates have a rough idea of how well it was going or not, but under island wide, you can only really scratch the surface in terms of talking with people. So I was completely in the dark, I thought I’d probably be lucky to scrape in.”

She didn’t scrape in though – she led the way home ahead of the other 37 elected candidates.

Deputy de Sausmarez’s strongest election yet

Deputy de Sausmarez finished 21st in 2020, with 8,645 votes (54%) in the first island wide election.

Prior to that she was successful in her first attempt to enter the States through the district system in 2016.

She ran in Guernsey’s South East District winning the second of five seats available with 1,808 votes (53.8%). 

Notably, all five of those deputies had continued serving in the States until today.

Two have decided to take a bow away from politics this year – with deputies Heidi Soulsby and Peter Roffey both standing down.

The other two South East politicians from 2016 were deputies Victoria Oliver and Rob Prow who both lost their seats in the 2025 election, coming 51st and 55th respectively out of 82 candidates. 

They weren’t alone with 17 new candidates taking seats, and three past deputies managing to successfully gain re-election (Marc Laine, Gary Collins, and Sarah Hansmann Rouxel), meaning just under half of the 38 seats went to incumbent deputies, (18). 

Speaking to Express shortly after the election results were announced, Deputy de Sausmarez said she’ll be sad to see some members of the current crop leave the States.

“We’ve lost colleagues, some of them very experienced. I’ve worked with all of them, obviously, and I am really sad to see them go. 

“That’s the nature of it, elections are absolutely brutal like that, but I do think all candidates deserve credit for sticking their head above the parapet, I was very undecided myself. 

“I very nearly didn’t (run for election) and yeah, it’s still sinking in. It hasn’t sunk in at all yet.”

Will Deputy de Sausmarez make a bid for the top seat?

With such a strong victory in this election, a majority of the public voting for her, and a strong trajectory from her first victory back in 2016 to topping the tables in 2025, the question was immediately asked – will Deputy de Sausmarez run for the top job as President of Policy and Resources?

She’s already built a successful political career with several strong showings in senior roles within government. 

Her initial response was non-committal. But whether or not Deputy de Sausmarez is persuaded by her colleagues to be nominated for the top job remains to be seen.

There are already a few other front runners for the role in this newly-elected States.

Deputy Charles Parkinson finished third in the polls with 9,294 votes, just 133 behind Deputy Yvonne Burford in second, and 1,427 behind Deputy de Sausmarez.

He has already stated his intention to claim the Presidency of Policy and Resources.

“My ambition was to come in the top five, and I’ve achieved that. So I feel I’ve got the mandate to have a run at Chief Minister and see where it goes,” he said.

Deputy de Sausmarez isn’t set on making her bid anyway, and said she’ll spend some time getting to know her new colleagues first, saying she believes that people’s roles in government should suit their skillset.

“I do think as a general rule, and this goes for any positions, I think it is important to understand where people’s skills lie and try to find the best possible matches. 

“I know a number of people have declared their interest in various positions. I’m interested in all sorts of things, but I think I do need to sit down with the list and a cup of tea and have a proper, proper think. 

“I think the conversations over the next few days will be really, really important in understanding where people’s interests and their strengths lie. So I think that’s what it’s about. It’s finding the best fit for people.”