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Debate has reopened over whether to give election candidates the option to have up to four pages inside the centrally-distributed manifesto booklet in 2025, rather than the standardised two pages offered in 2020.
The States Assembly & Constitution Committee deferred a final decision on the booklet to its next meeting in May while revised estimates are gathered on how the change would impact electoral budgets and production timelines.
The combined manifesto booklet was introduced for the first island wide election in 2020 and distributed to all households on the electoral roll as the community faced having 38 votes for over 100 candidates for the first time.
SACC member Deputy Yvonne Burford argued for more choice, saying the option of two or four pages would help address public feedback to provide more information ahead of polling day.
This was highlighted in a Scrutiny Management Review of the island wide voting system which she led, with it also highlighted that the combined manifesto booklet was a more valued source of information over websites and other materials.
“We’ve got to make this easier for people.”
She noted that more pages would increase production costs, but suggested there is a “general consensus” that fewer candidates will throw their name into the ring in 2025.
If 150 people stand in 2025, the booklet is likely to exceed 600 pages if most opt to use four pages for their manifesto.
Deputy Burford also expressed concern with the timing of postal voting slips, saying the booklet should be sent out before ballots so people can make as informed a decision as possible.
Pictured: A template of the space offered to each candidate in the manifesto booklet in 2020.
An official warned against increasing the number of pages due to production timescales and accessibility concerns.
They said a significant increase in pages would put the production schedule, noted as being extremely tight already, out by 15 days with added risk since the tens of thousands of booklets must be printed in the UK and shipped over.
In that scenario it would be “impossible” to distribute the manifestos prior to a public meet-the-candidates event during the campaigning period, they added.
It was also noted that wordier and larger documents can be intimidating for unconfident readers, and any barriers to electoral participation should be removed.
But Deputies Burford and Gavin St Pier questioned if a delay of 15 days was logical, and instructed officials to evidence that claim and consult a variety of printing houses in the UK.
Deputy St Pier also requested visual mock-ups of what a larger booklet would look like to scale.
Deputy Simon Fairclough backed keeping two pages only, saying many candidates could’ve written more in 2020 “without using so many photos”.
“I think it's enough, if you can't convey the headlines on those pages then I think that says something in itself,” he said.
He added that the format should be consistent to eliminate public questioning of why some had more space than others.
On postal voting, SACC agreed that it made sense to distribute election materials prior to voting slips.
It was also suggested that postal voting would be marketed less intensely than in 2020 since the island is no longer on a pandemic footing and to reduce risks of coercion. Officials agreed but did note that the island wide system “lends itself” to postal votes due to its complexity.
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