The Green Party has recorded its first-ever second place result in an election for a directly-elected mayor. Bristol Mayor candidate Sandy Hore-Ruthven went toe-to-toe with the current Labour mayor Marvin Rees, who both reached the second round of counting.
The result follows strong results for the Green Party’s Metro Mayor candidate Jerome Thomas and PCC candidate Cleo Lake, who both finished second within the Bristol counting area. Expectations are high for numerous Green gains once the Bristol City Council results are declared today.
Hore-Ruthven said: “This is a landmark result for the Green Party in Bristol – there is no doubt at all now that the Green Party is a major party in this city.”
“I’m so thankful to everybody who voted Green. You have declared clearly that we must tackle the climate emergency, and we must recover from the pandemic in a way that doesn’t leave anybody behind. We must make sure there are good jobs and affordable homes for all, and we must have constructive leadership where we work together to tackle the problems we face.”
“I know the Green councillors who will be elected tomorrow will hit the ground running to provide Bristol with the Green leadership that voters have called for, and to make certain Bristol becomes a greener and fairer city.”
He added: “Congratulations to Marvin Rees on his victory - I wish him the best in leading the city. I have loved every minute of this campaign - meeting people from all walks of life, seeing the amazing businesses, the strength of our communities and marvelling at the incredible diversity of Bristol. It has made me love our city even more.”
Attention now turns to the city council election count, where all 70 councillor seats are up for grabs. The Greens say they are feeling quietly confident of further breakthroughs across Bristol.
ENDS
Notes
Hore-Ruthven is pronounced “Hoare-Riven”
Sandy Hore-Ruthven has been Chief Executive of Bristol charity Creative Youth Network for the last 15 years, taking it from a small charity with a handful of staff to the largest youth charity of its kind in the UK, supporting around ten thousand young people each year.