Women make history as Mézec scrapes in

Following a dramatic election which went down to the final vote in St Helier shortly after 3 am, the 34-year-old received 15,518 votes and polled strongly in every parish.

She was closely followed by another female candidate – Deputy Kristina Moore – who secured 15,292 votes in a result so strong she is now considering standing for Chief Minister.

But despite a host of new faces being elected into the States, just two sitting Members – St Mary Constable Juliette Gallichan and St Clement Deputy Simon Brée – lost their seats in the House.

The results cast a major question over the future of party politics in the Island, as Reform Jersey suffered a series of defeats at the polls and saw their chairman, Deputy Sam Mézec, scrape onto the Senatorial benches in eighth place.

The Senator-elect only secured his place in the new States after receiving a colossal 3,118 votes in St Helier.

Despite flooding the election field with 18 candidates the party saw little traction on the night, securing just two extra seats, taking their total to five.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Ian Gorst, who topped the poll in 2014, saw his popularity slide, finishing sixth.

The Senator is now facing a challenge for the top job, with Deputy John Le Fondré, who finished third with 14,214 votes, announcing that he will be putting himself forward for the position. Senator Lyndon Farnham, who finished a comfortable fourth, has previously said he would also stand for Chief Minister if re-elected.

Senator-elect Vallois, who is the first woman to top the Senatorial poll since Corrie Stein in 1990, appeared to have gone to bed before the final results came in and was unavailable for comment.

But Senator-elect Moore described her night as ‘amazing’, adding: ‘It has been very surprising. I didn’t expect to be in the top three, so it has been a really amazing experience.

‘I am really grateful to those who have shown their support and faith in me.’

Regarding the success of female candidates on the night, the Senator-elect added: ‘It’s excellent to see two women at the top of the poll.

‘Often people say there is a token woman vote but to see that women are well represented within the Senatorial benches is excellent to see.’

She added that she was a supporter of Senator Gorst but would not rule out challenging him for the Chief Minister’s job.

Reflecting on his performance at the poll, Senator Gorst said that an incumbent Chief Minister was always going to struggle in an election and would be held responsible for any failures of the government.

However, he has vowed to stand again for Chief Minister, and added: ‘I will be speaking to all the people who have been elected over the next few days and asking them what they want.’

Speaking at Reform Jersey’s election headquarters at the Mayfair Hotel, Deputy Montfort Tadier said that despite the party’s struggles on the night, there was still a future for party politics in Jersey.

‘It has been a team effort. Sam has left it a little bit late. There is still a place for party politics in Jersey.’

Deputy Mézec was not available for comment, as he left the Mayfair earlier in the night when it looked as though he was not going to make the top eight.

Speaking about his success, Senator Farnham said: ‘We had some very capable and experienced politicians step down this time, so I think the public wanted to see some experienced people remain in.

‘I think they have appreciated the work that I have done with Economic Development.’