Tim Bowles (Conservative) was named the first Mayor of the West of England Combined Authority following a region-wide election last Thursday. The result was announced on Friday by Returning Officer, Stephen Hughes.

Mr Bowles was declared the winner of the election following an overnight count that saw 199,519 ballots verified by elections staff across Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol and South Gloucestershire.

Mr Bowles received 70,300 votes, finishing ahead of Radstock’s Lesley Mansell (Labour and Co-operative Party), who received 65,923 votes after the counting of first and second preference votes when no single candidate received more than 50% of first preference votes.

The turnout was 29.72%, with B&NES having the highest turnout of possible voters. In our area in the first preference votes Tim Bowles ranked first with 13,103 votes, Stephen Williams (Liberal Democrats) had 10,021 and Lesley Mansell (Labour and Co-operative) had 6,137.

In Bristol, Lesley Mansell was the first preference vote favourite with 29,676 votes, Stephen Williams in second with 20,675 and Tim Bowles, third, with 18,146. In South Gloucestershire, first preference votes saw Tim Bowles with 22,547, John Savage (Independent) with 9,502 and Stephen Williams with 9,098.

Speaking after the results had been announced, Tim Bowles thanked everyone involved with the count and his fellow candidates. He said: “I think we have genuinely developed a good rapport and camaraderie throughout this campaign.”

Mr Bowles began his post on Monday this week. Speaking about the new role, he said: “Firstly, may I say I’m very proud to be elected as the first West of England Mayor.

“This is an exciting time for our region, as the West of England Combined Authority takes on new powers, funding and responsibilities from central Government.

“This means that as a region, we can be much more ambitious – we can make decisions here in the West of England about things that affect our residents every day – decisions about homes, transport, skills for jobs and how we support businesses to ensure our economy continues to grow.

“I think it is important that I take some time to listen to what people have to say to me, especially the Mayor and Leaders of the local authorities, who are already working closely together.

“I am committed to working collaboratively and constructively with my colleagues in the Combined Authority – together we will make decisions about what is best for our region, cutting across the divides of council boundaries.

“I know the three councils have worked together very successfully over many years – I want to complement and build on that track record and ensure that the benefits of our devolution deal can be used to benefit everyone across the region.

“Whilst we appreciate that North Somerset Council is not part of the Combined Authority at this stage, we will continue to work closely with them to ensure we can deliver economic growth for the wider region.

“The devolution deal unlocks a billion pounds of funding over the next thirty years. This will help us work together to tackle priorities such as improving transport, delivering affordable homes and investing in the skills training needed for the local economy.

“I hope this is just the start – I want us to plan ahead and work with Government to secure more funding and future devolution deals to benefit our area.”

Lesley Mansell, the Labour and Co-operative candidate, who lives in Radstock, told The Journal this week that she was not disappointed with the result. She said: “It was marvellous, really. The Tories should have had a two thirds majority and they didn’t. I had a good campaign and am not disappointed at all. At every hustings, there was a little bit of my manifesto creeping in from each of the other candidates – I could have brought a lot to the role, with one of the biggest subjects being the economy; I would have worked with the social and voluntary sector to improve conditions.

“I do think that Labour has every chance now in the forthcoming General Election.”

A full breakdown of the election results is available on the West of England Combined Authority website and can be found at: https://www.westofengland-ca.org.uk/mayoral-election/west-england-combined-authority-mayoral-election-result/