A murmur is growing into a roar as a growing coalition of different interest groups across Sussex call for a delay to the mayoral elections otherwise planned for May 2026.
Local councillors have raised concerns about the timing of the election. Two MPs, having received hundreds of letters from Sussex residents, raised the issue in the first reading of the bill. Democracy champions, Compass, in local groups across Sussex, are also actively campaigning for a delay.
Democratic deficit
The arguments are persuasive. When Sussex decided to become one of six priority areas in the devolution programme there was no suggestion that there would be any disadvantage from being at the front of the queue. It now appears there will be.
The intention was always that the mayoral election be run using the Supplementary Vote (SV) system, which virtually all parties agree is fairer. However, as Labour councillor John Hewitt, the cabinet adviser for devolution and government reorganisation in Brighton and Hove, has told Compass, the legislation to enable this is going to take longer than expected and so the 2026 elections will take place with First Past the Post (FPTP).
There is a disconnect here. In the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, the Government was absolutely clear it would use the Supplementary Vote because, compared to FPTP, it better reflects the preferences and values of residents particularly when electing a single powerful figure across a large constituency.
It seems however, the urgency to get the election underway has trumped the earlier enthusiasm for fairness.
Multi million pound budgets
The Westminster government was clear why it preferred SV. Mayors serve many millions of people and manage multi million pound budgets so their selection process needs to be fair. The issue is that, using FPTP, they can be elected by just a fraction of the vote.
Given the large population that regional mayors represent – far exceeding that of parliamentarians – the government believes that they should be elected with a greater consensus amongst their electors.
That’s clear enough but because of Government’s determination to go ahead quickly, they’ve ended up using the old system despite the obvious risk of seriously compromising the process and undermining the legitimacy of the result.
Plenty of precedent
There is a precedent for delay. Two other of the priority areas, Cumbria and Cheshire and Warrington, have been granted a delay. This was partly because they argued that a delayed election could be coordinated with other council elections due the following year and so make significant savings. This same argument is clearly applicable to Sussex where a delay until 2027 would mean that the election of the Mayor would coincide with the anticipated unitary elections for West and East Sussex. This would bring down the combined costs and almost certainly deliver a higher turnout for both elections.
Taking an extra year to get the process right will also allow time for the public to be properly informed about what it’s all about. This is a big change, with a completely new office and a new set of powers but, as yet, awareness of the forthcoming mayoral election is extremely low.
All the serious parties want to rebuild trust in democracy. They recognise the importance of the first Sussex mayor having a strong mandate. This is especially an issue when there is low turnout. We know that the use of FPTP could lead to the Mayor being elected by a very small percentage of the population (even a little as 10%). With so many parties likely to contest the election – Conservative, Reform, Labour, Liberal Democrats and the Greens and many independents – this is very likely what will happen.
Political optics and fallout
So the campaign is building for the Government to defer the election until 2027 when the SV system can be used. Discussions seem to be going on behind the scenes.
Both the County Councils are making their voices heard. Two councillors in East Sussex have put forward a motion for postponement, citing concerns about the timing and the electoral system to be used. That motion was defeated but the arguments go on. West Sussex County Councils’ website suggests there is a lively debate there on the 2026 timetable and the ongoing devolution consultation, even if the conclusion is not yet clear.
This is not an argument driven by party political advantage. It is simply an issue of fairness and legitimacy. Given there is currently so little understanding of what is going to happen, there shouldn’t be much public backlash by calling a delay. The message is quite simply: delay the Sussex and Brighton Mayoral election until the 2027 election cycle.
This important election should not be done under FPTP.
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