Timing of Jersey electoral reforms risked 'undermining confidence in the process'

Independent observers brought in to oversee the running of Jersey's 2022 general election have called for future electoral reforms to be brought in with more notice.

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association's observers have warned that scrapping Senators, changing electoral districts, and introducing a 'none of the candidates' option came too close to polling day.

Some islanders said the changes were 'hastily introduced' and 'without sufficient consultation'.

Among 14 recommendations, the election observers have said future reforms to the way Jersey elects its politicians should not be introduced less than a year before the election.

They said that late changes risk "undermining confidence in the process" and go against established good practice.

Other recommendations include reviewing the legal requirement for voters to possess a photographic form of ID when voting in Jersey and allowing alternative ways of proving someone's identity at polling stations.

The observers said asking for a passport or driving licence when one isn't legally required risks some people being excluded from their democratic right to vote.

Other suggestions include encouraging candidates to stand from a range of backgrounds, further reducing uncontested elections, and scrapping barcodes on ballot papers which could be used to identify individual voters.