2012 England and Wales police and crime commissioner elections


The 2012 police and crime commissioner elections were polls held in most police areas in England and Wales on Thursday 15 November. The direct election of police and crime commissioners was originally scheduled for May 2012 but was postponed in order to secure the passage of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 through the House of Lords. The government considers the elected commissioners to have a stronger mandate than the "unelected and invisible police authorities that they replace". The elections took place alongside by-elections for the House of Commons in Cardiff South and Penarth, Corby and Manchester Central, and a mayoral election in Bristol.
Police and crime commissioner elections were held in November for 41 of the 43 territorial police forces in England and Wales; the City of London Police and Metropolitan Police are overseen by the Court of Common Council and the elected Mayor of London respectively. Elections for police and crime commissioners did not take place in Scotland or Northern Ireland as policing and justice powers are devolved to the Scottish Parliament and Northern Ireland Assembly.
The elections were marked by very low turnouts, between 10 and 20%, and numbers of spoilt votes, sparking a debate about their legitimacy and organisation. The day after the election, former Home Secretary Charles Clarke suggested that, because of the low turnout and high number of spoilt ballot papers, there was no popular mandate for the new commissioners. The Electoral Commission said that it would be reviewing the results.

Election details

Commissioners have a set four-year term of office and a maximum of two terms.
The election used the supplementary vote system: voters marked the ballot paper with their first and second choices of candidate. If no candidate got a majority of first preference votes, the top two candidates went on to a second round in which second preference votes of the eliminated candidates were allocated to them to produce a winner. This is the system used to elect London's mayor. Section 57 of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 directs that the voting system is first past the post if there are only two candidates for a specific commissioner region.
A dedicated website was launched providing information on all candidates from which voters could request hardcopy information leaflets printed to order.
All registered electors living in England and Wales who were aged 18 or over on Thursday 15 November 2012 were entitled to vote in the PCC elections. Those who were temporarily away from their ordinary address could still vote in the PCC elections. Those who were registered to vote at more than one address were entitled to vote in the PCC elections at both addresses, as long as they were not in the same police force area.
The deadline to register to vote in the PCC elections was midnight on Wednesday 31 October 2012, though anyone who qualified as an anonymous elector had until midnight on Thursday 8 November 2012 to register. Nominations for candidates closed at midday on Friday 19 October 2012, and the official list of nominated candidates was published on Tuesday 23 October 2012.

Electoral Commission

On 11 September 2012 the Electoral Commission, the independent elections watchdog in the UK, announced it would run a public awareness campaign from Monday 22 October 2012 until polling day 15 November 2012. A booklet was sent to every household in England and Wales with factual information on the PCC elections. The commission also published a briefing note setting out the steps that needed to be taken to ensure the police and crime commissioner elections were well run. Jenny Watson, chair of the Electoral Commission, said: "While we don't agree with the decisions taken by the Government about how to make people aware of these elections, it's now time to focus on making the arrangements work for voters."

Party positions

Both Labour and the Conservatives fielded candidates in all 41 elections, while the Liberal Democrats fielded 24 candidates and UKIP fielded 23 candidates in England and one in North Wales. The English Democrats fielded five candidates, the Green Party had just one candidate, and the British Freedom Party also had one candidate. Plaid Cymru did not stand any candidates for the four Welsh constabularies. There were 57 other candidates; 54 stood as independents and three stood under other labels.

Party funding

Candidates standing for election were required to post a £5,000 deposit, which was returned if they received at least 5 per cent of the vote.
The Labour Party initially considered not fielding candidates under party colours in favour of independent candidates, claiming that running candidates would politicise police forces. However the party later changed its position, letting candidates stand as Labour candidates and funding their deposits.
The Conservative Party Central Office did not provide any funding for Conservative candidates, leaving them either to fund deposits out of their own pockets or to be funded by local Conservative associations.
The Liberal Democrats Federal Executive Committee voted against providing funds for regional parties who wished to stand candidates.

Turnout

In August 2012 the Electoral Reform Society predicted that government mishandling of the elections was likely to lead to the lowest election turnout in UK peacetime history.
Turnout was low for the elections across England and Wales: below 20% in most areas — with a total turnout of 15.1%. Lack of information and the November timing of the election were cited as reasons for the low turnout. It was also argued that the election should have been held on the same day as local elections.

Results

Overall results

This table includes the results of the May 2012 election for the Mayor of London, who holds PCC responsibilities.
''Turnout: 18.3%''

England

[Avon and Somerset Constabulary]

  • Bob Ashford was the original Labour candidate, but stood down on 8 August due to a conviction for possession of an offensive weapon, received when aged 13, and was replaced by Dr John Savage, a businessman who chairs a local NHS hospital trust.
  • Cllr Pete Levy was the Liberal Democrat candidate.
  • Cllr Ken Maddock, former leader of Somerset County Council, was the Conservative candidate.
  • Sue Mountstevens, a Bristol magistrate, was an independent candidate.
  • Ian Kealey was selected as the UKIP candidate, but withdrew.

    [Bedfordshire Police]

  • Kevin Carroll stood for the British Freedom Party.
  • Linda Jack, a teacher, stood for the Liberal Democrats.
  • Olly Martins was the Labour and Co-operative candidate.
  • Jas Parmar, a former police officer, was the Conservative candidate.
  • Mezanur Rashid, a community worker, was an independent candidate.

    [Cambridgeshire Constabulary]

  • Ansar Ali, a member of the Police Authority, stood as an independent candidate.
  • Graham Bright, former Conservative MP for Luton South, was the Conservative candidate, replacing former RAF officer Air commodore John Pye, who was initially selected as the Conservative candidate but later stood down.
  • Paul Bullen, a magistrate, was the UKIP candidate.
  • Stephen Goldspink, former Peterborough councillor, stood for the English Democrats.
  • Farooq Mohammed stood as an independent candidate.
  • Rupert Moss-Eccardt, former Cambridge councillor, stood for the Liberal Democrats.
  • Cllr Ed Murphy was the Labour candidate.

    [Cheshire Constabulary]

  • Ainsley Arnold, Vice Chairman of Cheshire Police Authority, was the Liberal Democrat candidate.
  • Louise Bours, a former councillor and Mayor of Congleton, was the UKIP candidate.
  • John Dwyer, former assistant chief constable of Cheshire, was the Conservative candidate.
  • Sarah Flannery, a businesswoman, stood as an independent.
  • Cllr John Stockton was the Labour candidate.

    [Cleveland Police]

  • Sultan Allam was an Independent.
  • Cllr Barry Coppinger was the Labour candidate.
  • Cllr Ken Lupton was the Conservative candidate.
  • Cllr Joe Michna was the Green Party candidate.

    [Cumbria Constabulary]

  • Cllr Pru Jupe was the Liberal Democrat candidate.
  • Patrick Leonard was the Labour candidate.
  • Richard Rhodes, a magistrate and former headmaster, was the Conservative candidate.
  • Cllr Mary Robinson stood as an independent candidate.

    [Derbyshire Constabulary]

  • Alan Charles, Police Authority Deputy, was the Labour candidate.
  • David Gale, a businessman, was the UKIP candidate.
  • Rod Hutton, a former Police Officer, stood as an independent.
  • Cllr Simon Spencer, Deputy Leader of Derbyshire County Council, was the Conservative candidate.

    [Devon and Cornwall Police]

  • Brian Blake, a former Devon and Cornwall Constabulary and Ministry of Defence police officer with three decades service with Devon and Cornwall Police and thirteen years service with the Ministry of Defence Police, stood for the Liberal Democrats.
  • Brian Greenslade, former chairman of Devon & Cornwall Police Authority, former Liberal Democrat chairman of Devon County Council and resources chair and board member APA, stood as an independent.
  • Commodore Tony Hogg, commanding officer of RNAS Culdrose, was the Conservative candidate.
  • Ivan Jordan RIBA, chartered architect and farmer, stood as an independent
  • William Morris, secretary general of the Next Century Foundation and chairman of the International Council for Press and Broadcasting, stood as an independent candidate.
  • John Smith, a former chairman of Devon & Cornwall Police Authority and former Liberal Democrat Devon County councillor, stood as an independent.
  • Nicky Williams was the Labour candidate.

    [Dorset Police]

  • Cllr Andy Canning was the Liberal Democrat candidate.
  • Cllr Nick King was the Conservative candidate.
  • Rachael Rogers was the Labour candidate.
  • Retired Detective Chief Inspector Martyn Underhill stood as an Independent