Restore meaningful choice in mayoral elections.
We always used to be able to put down a second choice as a backup when picking who becomes our mayors. It meant candidates had to be broadly popular to win. But, the last Government snuck in a clause to strip us of this power as they rushed through the Elections Act in 2022.
We saw the damage, with mayors being elected on low shares of the vote – when the majority didn’t want them.
The current government has announced the English Devolution & Community Empowerment Bill will scrap First Past the Post (FPTP) for mayoral and Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) elections and reinstate the traditional Supplementary Vote (SV) system.
Considering what happened when First Past the Post was imposed, this is fantastic news. But it’s also an opportunity. We now live in a multi-party world where it’s difficult to predict who to give your second choice to, if you want to ensure you get a say in who becomes mayor. The government should let us put as many back up choices as we want so we don’t have to second guess everyone else.
Add your name to demand this government repair the damage and return to a fairer voting system