Who wants to be a councillor?

The full list of candidates standing for election to the Isle of Wight Council was published yesterday, confirming a competitive election. In total, 164 candidates are contesting the 39 seats up for election.

Nine areas will definitely see a new councillor, with the sitting members not seeking re election: Bembridge (Cllr Joe Robertson MP), Carisbrooke & Gunville (Cllr Joe Lever), Cowes North (Cllr Richard Quigley MP), Freshwater North & Yarmouth (Cllr Peter Spink), Nettlestone & Seaview (Cllr David Adams), Newchurch, Havenstreet & Ashey (Cllr Clare Mosdell), Pan & Barton (Cllr Geoff Brodie), Ryde South East (Cllr Warren Drew) and Wootton Bridge (Cllr Sarah Redrup). One of these, Cllr Warren Drew, is seeking a return – but this time in Bembridge, where Cllr Joe Robertson MP is standing down, he will be wearing a blue rosette for the Conservatives again.

Reform UK is the only party fielding a candidate in every single division. The Conservatives are contesting 36 seats (not standing in Brading & St Helens, Freshwater South or Parkhurst – against Cllrs Jonathan Bacon, Becca Cameron and Andrew Garratt respectively), while the Green Party is fielding 26 candidates, Labour 17, the Liberal Democrats 14, and the Vectis Party two. There are also 25 Independents and five candidates standing under the Island Independent Network banner. Three divisions – Cowes Medina, Osborne and Sandown North (currently Cllrs Lora Peacey-Wilcox, Stephen Hendry and Debbie Andre) – feature more than one Independent, setting up multi way contests for those who choose not to support a political party candidate.

Most divisions have between three and five candidates, with Parkhurst & Hunnyhill the only two way fight, which will be between the sitting Liberal Democrat, Cllr Andrew Garratt, and his Reform UK challenger. At the other end of the scale, Ryde South East, Sandown North and Totland & Colwell (Cllrs Warren Drew who is standing in Bembridge, Ian Ward and Chris Jarman) have each attracted six candidates, making them the most hotly contested seats on the Island.

The nomination papers also reveal some notable shifts in political identity. Two councillors who currently sit as Empowering Islanders – Cllrs Becca Cameron and Chris Jarman – are standing as Independents. Cllr Caroline Gladwin, the sitting Reform UK councillor for Central Rural, is also standing as an Independent, while former Tory councillor for Newport West Richard Hollis, whose Declaration of Interests for Cowes Town Council includes his membership of the Conservative Party, is seeking election as an Independent in Cowes North, where Cllr Richard Quigley MP is standing down.

Of the 164 candidates, 70 of them (43 per cent) have chosen not to publish their home addresses, which was the default until the law changed for the 2019 elections. The option to keep addresses private has used in this election by candidates across all political parties except the Vectis Party and some Independents, although candidates for the Island Independent Network all provide their residential details.

All told, the full table of nominations sets the stage for an interesting and competitive set of IW Council elections. With the emergence of Reform UK as a new political force, shifting allegiances and a choice of candidates in every division, the next few weeks will give voters plenty to consider before polling day on May 7.

You can see the full list of those nominated across the Island HERE.