Analysis of 2026 election published

The Policy Centre Jersey has today published a Policy Brief 2026 General Election.

This analyses the results of the election and voting patterns, concentrating in particular on the turnout.  The statistics are provisional as the official ones have not yet been published. Key points –

• The turnout was 32% compared with 7% in the 2022 election. However, on a like-for-like basis (voters/eligible voters) turnout increased from 31.3% to 32.0%. The reduction of ten percentage points in the turnout was caused by voters being automatically registered, which added 24,000 to the size of the electorate. However, the number of voters increased by only 2,000.
• Guernsey has a low voter registration/eligible voter ratio. Its published turnout figure in the 2025 election was 72.1%, but on a comparable basis with Jersey it was 40%.
• Turnout in the constable elections ranged from 21.9% in St Helier to 52.6% in St Mary.
• Of the nine senators who were elected, six were sitting deputies. The gap between the last (ninth) elected candidate and the tenth was 2,197 votes.The successful candidates scored between 42.6% and 58.5% of votes.
• On average, voters used 6.8 of their nine senator votes.
• As six sitting constables stood unopposed, voters were able to choose “none of the above” on the ballot paper, with this option securing between 6.9% and 26.9% of the vote. In the contested seats, two sitting constables lost to new candidates. In the seat with the most contestants (five, St Helier) the winning candidate had 40.1% of the votes.
• Of the 28 deputies elected, 17 were sitting members. Two sitting members were defeated.
• The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Election Observer Mission on the election published a Preliminary Statement on 11 June. Its key conclusion was that: “Elections were delivered effectively despite tight timelines and differing responsibilities across institutions. Legal changes close to the election date strained administration, especially in the parishes, but strong coordination, outreach, and volunteer effort ensured an orderly election.”