The inaugural West of England mayoral election was held on 4 May 2017 to elect the Mayor of the West of England metropolitan area. The area is made up of

Bath and North East Somerset Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES) is a unitary authority district in England. Bath and North East Somerset Council was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the county of Avon. It is part of the ceremonial county of Somerset. Th ...

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

and

South Gloucestershire South Gloucestershire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, South West England. Towns in the area include Yate, Chipping Sodbury, Thornbury, Filton, Patchway and Bradley Stoke, the latter three forming part ...

. Subsequent elections will be held every four years. The election was won by Conservative Tim Bowles. The overall turnout for the election was low, with only 29.7% of the electorate voting.

Background

The election coincided with the creation of the

West of England Combined Authority The West of England Combined Authority (WECA) is a combined authority within the West of England area, consisting of the local authorities of Bristol, South Gloucestershire, and Bath and North East Somerset. The combined authority is led by the ...

, made up of the

and

council areas.

North Somerset North Somerset is a unitary authorities of England, unitary district in Somerset, South West England. Whilst its area covers part of the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Somerset, it is administered independently of the non ...

was not part of the Combined Authority, as its council voted against the devolution deal in June 2016.

Procedure

Bristol City Council Bristol City Council is the local authority of Bristol, England. The council is a unitary authority, and is unusual in the United Kingdom in that its executive function is controlled by a directly elected mayor of Bristol. Bristol has 34 wards ...

acted as the Combined Authority Returning Officer. Formal nominations to stand could be made from 28 March 2017 to 4 April 2017. This election used the supplementary voting system, with electors having two votes. One vote for the first choice candidate, with an optional vote for a second choice candidate used if no candidate has more than 50% of the first choice votes.

Campaign

Independent John Savage proposed the development of a "super tram network" for the Combined Authority if elected, as part of a larger public transport policy. He also pledged to write to Channel 4 to ask the channel to consider moving to the West of England. Labour candidate Lesley Mansell promised greater protection for private tenants against "unscrupulous" landlords and 4,000 new homes a year. Conservative Tim Bowles pledged to build more affordable homes and protect the green belt. Liberal Democrat candidate Stephen Williams launched a range of policies with

Vince Cable Sir John Vincent Cable (born 9 May 1943) is a British politician who was Leader of the Liberal Democrats from 2017 to 2019. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Twickenham from 1997 to 2015 and from 2017 to 2019. He also served in the Cabinet a ...

, including rolling out broadband to the region's villages and getting rid of the Severn Bridge toll. Bowles, Mansell and Williams all advocated making the region attractive for business. UKIP's Aaron Foot promised to build an online direct democracy platform and to "end the war on motorists".

Candidates

2017 West of England mayoral transport debate, side view

Six candidates stood in the election.

Conservative Party

Tim Bowles, events company manager,

councillor.

Green Party

Darren Hall, former

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

engineering officer, project manager, former Parliamentary candidate in Bristol West.

Labour Party

Lesley Mansell,

NHS The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

manager, Westfield parish councillor and former

Peasedown St John Peasedown St John (commonly referred to as Peasedown) is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, standing on a hilltop roughly south-southwest of the city of Bath, and north-east of the town of Radstock at the foot of the Mendip Hills. ...

parish councillor.

Liberal Democrats

Stephen Williams, chartered tax consultant, former MP for Bristol West and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.

UK Independence Party

Aaron Foot, farmer, Coleford parish councillor, 2016 candidate for Avon & Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner.

Independent

John Savage, businessman, chair of

University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust The University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) is a National Health Service foundation trust in Bristol and Weston-super-Mare, England. The trust runs Bristol Royal Infirmary, Bristol Heart Institute, Bristol Royal Hosp ...

and Bristol Chamber of Commerce and Initiative, treasurer of

Bristol Cathedral Bristol Cathedral, the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is the Church of England cathedral in the city of Bristol, England. Founded in 1140 and consecrated in 1148, it was originally St Augustine's Abbey but after the Dissolu ...

, 2012 Labour candidate for Avon & Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner.

Results

Overall

By local authority

Bath and North East Somerset

Bristol

South Gloucestershire

References

{{Somerset elections 2017 English local elections Mayoral elections in England Politics of Bath and North East Somerset Politics of Bristol Politics of South Gloucestershire District 2010s in Gloucestershire 2010s in Bristol 2010s in Somerset May 2017 events in the United Kingdom