Election result: St Mary

Wednesday 26th November 2008, 8:33PM GMT.

Green campaigner Daniel Wimberley narrowly beat retired solicitor David Johnson to become St Mary’s new Deputy.

Mr Wimberley, who failed in last month’s Senatorial election, polled 261 votes to Mr Johnson’s 206, with serial candidate David Richardson attracting just 28 votes.

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1
Geno

November 26, 2008 at 9:22 pm

What a joke. This guy comes 14th in the Senatorial elections and then gets into the States with 261 votes. Until we reform the electoral system we will get the States we deserve

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2
steve du feu

November 27, 2008 at 5:34 pm

Excellent result Daniel. Great to have a states member with such strong environmental and social values. All the best.

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3
Kaspar

November 28, 2008 at 10:21 am

Hello Geno…
This ‘guy’ happens to be one of those who is in favour of states reform. You can count yourselves lucky that somebody with principles and moral values has got into he states – which is unfortunately not easy.

Feel free to give him a call or do a spot of research so that you know who you are talking about.

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4
Geno

November 28, 2008 at 12:52 pm

Kaspar. You miss the point. I have no issue with Mr Wimberley personally, indeed I broadly endorse his views on electoral reform. I object to all of the effort that goes into Senatorial elections when the losers in that Island wide mandate can then sneak of to a deputies election and get elected with 261 votes. This candidate failed to get elected into a Senatorial seat by a mere 3000 odd votes and now earns £40,000 a year having been elected by 261 people or to put it another way, £153 a year for each person who voted for him. What a fantastic system

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5
Pip Clement

November 28, 2008 at 1:00 pm

Hi Geno,

I think you will find that generally the conservative and establishment members of the States are against electoral reform and the left, liberal and green elements are for it.
This is because reform of the States would shift more seats towards them as the country districts like St Mary are over represented while St Helier deserves a few more seats.
This is why electoral reform in Jersey is so unlikely, it would be against the interests of the current majority in the States!

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6
Nellie Macon

November 28, 2008 at 4:56 pm

Well done Daniel.

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7
Geno

November 28, 2008 at 5:28 pm

Pip

I think you are right but that should not be a reason to not consider change. It also assumes that the solution is to get rid of Senators and Constables and simply have more deputies. I am at a loss on an Island of this size, why we need to move down the Deputy route rather than having Island wide elections for all States Members. Whilst undoubtedly St Helier has the largest population, it also has the lowest turnout at elections which doesn’t suggest that vesting the future of the Island in those hands is a particularly positive development

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8
Kaspar

November 30, 2008 at 11:09 pm

You are in part right Geno… and Daniel also said at the hustings in St Mary that one of the problems that needs addressing is that St Mary is over represented. (the hustings can be heard online from his election website)

But this doesn’t make it wrong for him to stand for deputy after the senatorials, in the system we currently have it would have proved almost impossible to get into the top six, and to effect change you have to keep going at it until there are enough of the right kind of people in the states to vote for electoral reform (among other things). We are lucky that this time quite a few faces got in who we can hope will stick to their guns.

Re the senatorials: It is also sometimes a mindset thing. People in St Mary would say that they just think that a candidate should be a deputy first, etc. Again, linked to how the system currently functions.

PS: His percentage of the vote in St Mary went from about 17% in the senatorials to over 50% in the deputies (a proper mandate for the parish).

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