The Chief Minister of Jersey (french: Premier/ère Ministre de Jersey; nrf, label=
Jèrriais
(french: Jersiais, also known as the Jersey Language, Jersey French and Jersey Norman French in English) is a Romance language and the traditional language of the Jersey people. It is a form of the Norman language spoken in Jersey, an island i ...
, Chef Minnistre dé Jèrri) is the
head of government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a gro ...
of
Jersey
Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label=Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependencies, Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west F ...
, leading the
Council of Ministers
A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nati ...
, which makes up part of the
Government of Jersey
, image =
, caption=Logos of the Government of Jersey in English and Jèrriais
, date =
, state = Jersey
, address = 19-21 Broad Street, Saint Helier
, appointed = Chief Minister, with approva ...
. The head of government is not directly elected by the people but rather by the legislature, the
States Assembly
The States Assembly (french: Assemblée des États; Jèrriais: ) is the parliament of Jersey, formed of the island's 37 deputies and the Connétable of each of the twelve parishes.
The origins of the legislature of Jersey lie in the system o ...
.
The post was created by reforms to the machinery of government to change from a consensus style of government by committee of the whole States of Jersey to a system of
cabinet government
A cabinet is a body of high-ranking state officials, typically consisting of the executive branch's top leaders. Members of a cabinet are usually called cabinet ministers or secretaries. The function of a cabinet varies: in some countrie ...
under a
Chief Minister
A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...
.
List of Chief Ministers
2000s
2005 election
The first chief minister of Jersey was elected on 5 December 2005 following the
2005 Jersey general election
Elections were held in 2005 for both Senators and Deputies to the States of Jersey.
Senator Elections
The elections for Senator were held on 19 October 2005. 6 seats were available. At the Electoral Assembly held on 13 September 2005, 15 can ...
.
Two candidates were nominated on 1 December 2005:
*Senator
Stuart Syvret
Stuart Syvret is a former Jersey politician. He held elected office as a member of the States of Jersey assembly from 1990 to 2010. From 1999 to 2007, Svyret had executive responsibilities first as President of the Health and Social Services C ...
*Senator
Frank Walker
In a
secret ballot
The secret ballot, also known as the Australian ballot, is a voting method in which a voter's identity in an election or a referendum is anonymous. This forestalls attempts to influence the voter by intimidation, blackmailing, and potential vote ...
on Monday, 5 December 2005, the States of Jersey elected Senator Walker to be the first chief minister in Jersey history, receiving 38 votes to Senator Syvret's 14 votes of support, an unsurprising result for the latter who considered himself the underdog (a concern he had expressed during the preceding weekend in an interview with
Channel Television
ITV Channel Television, previously Channel Television, is a British television station which has served as the ITV contractor for the Channel Islands since 1962. It is based in Jersey and broadcasts regional programme for insertion into the ...
).
2008 election
Senator
Terry Le Sueur was elected chief minister on 8 December 2008 following the
2008 Jersey general election.
In a secret ballot, the States of Jersey voted for Senator Le Sueur with 36 votes. The only other challenger, Senator
Alan Breckon, received 17 votes.
2010s
2011 election
![Assèrmentâtion des Membres d's Êtats 2011 Saint Hélyi Jèrri 02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Ass%C3%A8rment%C3%A2tion_des_Membres_d%27s_%C3%8Atats_2011_Saint_H%C3%A9lyi_J%C3%A8rri_02.jpg)
Senator
Ian Gorst
Ian Joseph Gorst (born 15 December 1969) is a Jersey politician who has been a Deputy for St Mary, St Ouen and St Peter and Minister for Treasury and Resources since 2022.
Gorst was first elected to the States Assembly in the 2005 gene ...
was elected chief minister in an
open ballot on 14 November 2011, beating Senator
Sir Philip Bailhache 27 votes to 24. He nominated his preferred candidates for
ministerial office on 16 November 2011, and took office as chief minister following the completion of elections of ministers on 18 November 2011.
2014 election
2018 election
Senator
John Le Fondré
John Alexander Nicholas Le Fondré is a Jersey politician who was the fourth Chief Minister of Jersey. He entered the States Assembly in 2005 as deputy for the Parish of St Lawrence, and was re-elected to this position in 2011 and 2014. Durin ...
was voted in as Jersey's fourth chief minister by 30 votes to 19, defeating Senator
Ian Gorst
Ian Joseph Gorst (born 15 December 1969) is a Jersey politician who has been a Deputy for St Mary, St Ouen and St Peter and Minister for Treasury and Resources since 2022.
Gorst was first elected to the States Assembly in the 2005 gene ...
who was looking to serve for a third term in the role. Gorst continued to serve on the Council of Ministers, taking over the external relations portfolio.
Senator
Lyndon Farnham
Lyndon John Farnham is a Jersey politician who is the Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Economic Development, Tourism, Sport and Culture. He used to be a Deputy for St Saviour, and is now a Senator. He is a businessman and a company direc ...
also declared an interest in standing as chief minister, but withdrew from the race to support Senator Le Fondré prior to the vote in the States Assembly - opting to remain as Minister for Economic Development instead.
2020s
2022 General Election
In January 2022, former Senator
Sir Philip Bailhache announced he was seeking a return to front-line politics, and would stand as the
Jersey Liberal Conservatives
The Jersey Liberal Conservatives is a centre-right party in Jersey founded in 2021 to compete for the following year's general election. It was officially registered on 8 January 2022.
Founding members include former the Bailiff of Jersey Phil ...
' candidate for Chief Minister if he was voted back in. He previously ran for the position in 2011.
The following month, the incumbent Chief Minister - Senator
John Le Fondré
John Alexander Nicholas Le Fondré is a Jersey politician who was the fourth Chief Minister of Jersey. He entered the States Assembly in 2005 as deputy for the Parish of St Lawrence, and was re-elected to this position in 2011 and 2014. Durin ...
- announced he would be standing as a candidate for the
Jersey Alliance
The Jersey Alliance is a centre-right party in Jersey, formed in 2021 by States Assembly deputy Gregory Guida to compete in the 2022 general election.
From the party's founding in 2021 until the 2022 Jersey election, Jersey Alliance led the ...
party. He wasn't however chosen as the party's candidate for leader, with members backing
Sir Mark Boleat instead. It meant that even if Senator Le Fondré was successfully re-elected, he would only serve one term as Chief Minister.
In May, Senator
Kristina Moore
Kristina Louise Moore is a Jersey politician and former journalist who is currently the Chief Minister of Jersey, as well as being a Deputy for St Mary, St Ouen and St Peter.
She has served in the States Assembly since 2011 and is currentl ...
- who served as Home Affairs Minister during
Ian Gorst
Ian Joseph Gorst (born 15 December 1969) is a Jersey politician who has been a Deputy for St Mary, St Ouen and St Peter and Minister for Treasury and Resources since 2022.
Gorst was first elected to the States Assembly in the 2005 gene ...
's premiership - announced her intention to stand for Chief Minister if re-elected.
For the 2022 general election, the position of Senator was abolished and all candidates stood as Deputies or Constables. As Senators were the only position to be elected using an island-wide vote, they traditionally took on the Ministerial roles in Jersey's government. 2022 would be the first time a Chief Minister would be appointed without an island-wide mandate since the position was established in 2005.
Islanders went to the polls in June, with John Le Fondré's Alliance party suffering a bruising defeat - meaning neither he nor his party leader, Sir Mark Boleat, were in a position to stand for Chief Minister. Candidates aligned to political parties weren't as popular with the electorate as
independent candidates
An independent or non-partisan politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent.
Some politicians have political views th ...
, meaning Sir Philip Bailhache didn't have enough support from States Members to put himself forward.
The only party to increase the number of seats in the Assembly was
Reform Jersey
Reform Jersey is a social-democratic political party in Jersey, a British Crown Dependency in the Channel Islands.
History Formation
Reform Jersey was founded in 2012 as a pressure group by Montfort Tadier, Nick Le Cornu, Jason Cronin and ...
, which led Deputy
Sam Mézec
Samuel Yves Mézec (born 26 December 1990), is a Jersey politician who is the leader of Reform Jersey. He has been a member of the States Assembly since 2014, serving as both a Deputy and later as a Senator.
Political career
Mézec was elected ...
to announce his intention to stand as the party's candidate for Chief Minister.
On Friday 1st July,
States Members elected Deputy Moore as Jersey's first female Chief Minister. Her picks for the
Council of Ministers
A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nati ...
were all backed in the States Assembly, including retaining Ian Gorst as Treasury Minister.
See also
*
References
External links
Government of Jersey website
Government of Jersey
{{jersey-stub