The Electoral Commission was established by the States of Jersey in 2011 against a background of numerous failures to agree electoral system reforms following the introduction of ministerial government.
Terms of reference
The commission's task was to consider the:
- classes of States member
- constituencies and mandates
- number of States members
- terms of office
and any other relevant issues which arose during its work.
The process
Following the appointment of its members, in May 2012 the commission began a three-month public consultation on its terms of reference. It received more than 340 written submissions and heard from 35 people at public hearings. All submissions were made public, unless the commission felt there were reasonable grounds for anonymity.
The commission also reviewed all previous studies and research.
On 22 October 2012, the commission's interim report and provisional recommendations were published and distributed to every household in Jersey, and meetings were held in every parish so that Islanders could hear an explanation of the recommendations and give their own views. Written comments were invited by 23 November 2012, and the commission received a further 97.
Having considered all submissions, the commission presented its final recommendations to the Privileges and Procedures Committee in January 2013.
Islanders are now asked to vote for one of three options put forward by the commission.
Referendum options and how to vote
Download Electoral Commission Final Report January 2013 on Electoral Commission website (size 2.35mb)
gov.je