Mayoral candidates set to be revealed

Three of the four major parties are due to reveal their candidates for next May’s mayoral election.

The Labour Party will announce either Marvin Rees or Mark Bradshaw as the winner of its ballot which closes on Thursday.

The Conservative Party are also due to hold an open primary vote between Charles Lucas and Steve Smith on Monday.

Bristol24/7 understands that Kay Barnard will be revealed as the Lib Dem candidate at an event this weekend.

Meanwhile, the Green Party are not set to make an announcement until October, with Tony Dyer likely to be the candidate. The party has had to deal with a shock endorsement of incumbent mayor George Ferguson by its hotly-tipped Bristol West parliamentary candidate at last May’s General Election.

Darren Hall said he was still a green member and supporter, but wanted to give Ferguson more time to make his changes to the city.

Ferguson is looking for one more term as mayor of Bristol and has got the ball rolling with a crowdfunding bid for his campaign and the mobilisation of his Bristol 1st party.

Bristol24/7 revealed earlier this year that Laurence Duncan will also stand in the election as an independent, with more independent candidates expected.

The first mayoral election in November 2012 saw 15 candidates step forward, including a total of six independents. These did not include Ferguson, who stood under the Bristol 1st banner.

Labour are tipped to provide the biggest threat to Ferguson in May’s election next year, with some suggesting the Green Party could make it a three-horse race.

Where the parties currently stand:

Labour

Mark Bradshaw, Bedminster councillor and former cabinet member (until he was sacked by Ferguson earlier this year for “playing party politics”) is up against Marvin Rees, Labour’s candidate who lost to Ferguson last time around. The ballot between some 3,000 Labour members in Bristol closes on Thursday with an announcement due shortly after.

Conservatives

Charles Lucas, councillor for Clifton ward, is up against Steve Smith, a recent Conservative Paarty member and manager of Emersons Green Medical Centre. The Tories are holding an open primary, trialled successfully in Totness, where anyone – irrespective of their political affiliations – can register to vote at a public event.

Lib Dems

The Lib Dems look likely to reveal Dr Kay Barnard, a professor of bio-chemistry who was a member of the management board of the University of Bristol. She has also spent four years as a non-executive director of an NHS Primary Care Trust. She has previously stood for the Lib Dems unsuccessfully as an MEP.

Greens

Tony Dyer, the Green Party’s parliamentary candidate for Bristol South in this year’s General Election, looks most likely to be announced as the mayoral candidate for next year, given Hall’s surprise announcement. The Greens will be the last major party to reveal their candidate in October when members will vote for their preference from a list or if there is only one name, vote to approve the party’s selection.

Independents

So far, only one independent candidate has stepped forward: Lawrence Duncan, a grandfather from Avonmouth. The quality manager at a vehicle parts company told Bristol24/7 he was running in the hope of sorting out the city’s transport infrastructure and improving the city’s green credentials.

Read about a devolution bid that could bring £1 billion to Bristol