The 2025 West of England mayoral election will be held on 2 May, 2025 to elect the mayor of the West of England, on the same day as other local elections across the country. It will be the third election for the role. For the first time the mayor will be elected using first past the post.
The West of England term has been used as a synonym for either south-west England or the former county of Avon which was abolished in 1996. The West of England Combined Authority (WECA) was created in 2017 as a statutory body which covers the local authority areas of Bristol, South Gloucestershire, and Bath and North East Somerset. [1] [2] It broadly resembles Avon, but excludes North Somerset because that council opposed joining the combined authority, although they collaborate on some projects. [3] [4] In October 2020, there were discussions around North Somerset joining the WECA in time for the May 2021 election, [5] [6] but councillors in Bristol voted down this proposal in early 2021. [7] The mayor of the West of England is the directly elected head of the WECA. [8] Under a devolution deal agreed in 2017, they have powers over a £30 million annual allocation from the government, to fund transport management, strategic planning of land and housing and adult education. [4]
The election will use the voting system of first past the post to elect the mayor, in this system the candidate with the most votes wins. The Electoral Reform Society described the move towards first past the post as one lowering the bar for policitians and thus damaging British democracy. [9]
Avon was a non-metropolitan and ceremonial county in the west of England that existed between 1974 and 1996. The county was named after the River Avon, which flows through the area. It was formed from the county boroughs of Bristol and Bath, together with parts of the administrative counties of Gloucestershire and Somerset.
Bradley Stoke is a town in South Gloucestershire, England, situated 6 miles north-northeast of Bristol city centre. The town is the northernmost part of the Bristol built-up area.
Dan Norris is a British Labour Party politician serving as the Mayor of the West of England since May 2021. He previously served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Wansdyke from 1997 to 2010.
Greater Bristol is a term used for the conurbation which contains and surrounds the city of Bristol in the South West of England. There is no official "Greater Bristol" authority, but the term is sometimes used by local, regional and national authorities, and others as a synonym for either the "Bristol Urban Area" or a wider area of the former County of Avon, and by some, TfGB, to refer to the Province of Bristol as defined by C. B. Fawcett (1919) or Derek Senior (1969).
West of England is a combined authority area in South West England, around the River Avon. It is made up of the Bristol, South Gloucestershire, and Bath and North East Somerset unitary authorities. The combined authority is led by the Mayor of the West of England Dan Norris. The city of Bristol is the region's largest population centre. Before the region, from 1974 until 1996, the area was under the County of Avon with North Somerset.
Bath and North East Somerset Council is the local council for the district of Bath and North East Somerset in Somerset, England.
The city of Bristol, England, is a unitary authority, represented by four MPs representing seats wholly within the city boundaries. The overall trend of both local and national representation became left of centre during the latter 20th century. The city has a tradition of local activism, with environmental issues and sustainable transport being prominent issues in the city.
Bristol is a city in south west England, near the Bristol Channel coast, approximately 106 miles (170 km) west of London. Several factors have influenced the development of its transport network. It is a major centre of employment, retail, culture and higher education, has many historic areas, and has a history of maritime industry. The city has a population of 450,000, with a metropolitan area of 650,000, and lies at the centre of the former County of Avon, which includes many dormitory towns, and has a population of one million.
MetroWest, formerly known as the Greater Bristol Metro, is a project to improve the rail services in Bristol, England, and the surrounding region. It was first proposed at First Great Western's Stakeholder Event in March 2008. The aim of the project is to develop half-hourly services through central Bristol which will also serve the surrounding West of England region. Transport campaigning groups Friends of Suburban Bristol Railways (FoSBR) and Transport for Greater Bristol are actively supporting the proposal, as are the three unitary authorities under the West of England Combined Authority and North Somerset Council.
Bristol City Council, formerly known as The Bristol Corporation, is the local government authority governing the city of Bristol, England. Following the Norman conquest of England in 1066, successive royal charters granted increasing rights of local governance to Bristol. County status was attained in 1373 and city status in the early sixteenth century. Bristol Corporation was established in the nineteenth century and the office of Lord Mayor was created in 1888. Following a brief period as part of the county of Avon in the late twentieth century, Bristol regained its status as a city and county in 1996.
This article lists proposed developments to transport in Bristol, England.
The Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner is the police and crime commissioner, an elected official tasked with setting out the way crime is tackled by Avon and Somerset Police in the English unitary authorities of Bristol, Bath and North East Somerset, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire and Somerset. The post was created in November 2012, following an election held on 15 November 2012, and replaced the Avon and Somerset Police Authority. Clare Moody was elected to the role in the May 2024 election.
The West of England Combined Authority (WECA) is a combined authority within the West of England area, consisting of the local authorities of Bristol, South Gloucestershire, and Bath and North East Somerset. The body has its headquarters in the Redcliffe area of Bristol, and is led by the Mayor of the West of England. The most recent election for this post took place on 6 May 2021, when the Labour candidate Dan Norris was elected on a turnout of 36%.
The inaugural West of England mayoral election was held on 4 May 2017 to elect the Mayor of the West of England metropolitan area. The area is made up of Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol and South Gloucestershire. Subsequent elections will be held every four years. The election was won by Conservative Tim Bowles. The overall turnout for the election was low, with only 29.7% of the electorate voting.
The Mayor of the West of England is the directly elected mayor who leads the West of England Combined Authority. The body, a combined authority, is responsible for the strategic administration of the West of England, including planning, transport and skills. For this purpose the West of England is defined as the local authority areas of Bristol, South Gloucestershire, and Bath and North East Somerset. The creation of the role was agreed in 2016 as part of a devolution deal, by the then Chancellor George Osborne and the leaders of the three councils.
Timothy Charles Bowles is a British Conservative politician who was the inaugural Mayor of the West of England serving from 2017 to 2021.
The 2021 West of England mayoral election was held on 6 May 2021 to elect the mayor of the West of England, on the same day as other local elections across the country. It was the second election for the role. The mayor was elected by the supplementary vote system.
The city of Bristol in the United Kingdom has included a light rail transport system in its plans from the 1980s onwards. There has been no light rail in the city since the closure of Bristol Tramways in 1941.
Elections for police and crime commissioners in England and Wales took place on 2 May 2024, the same day as local elections in England.