Postal vote requests jump nearly 20% in East Devon

Over 22,000 requested one

The number of postal vote requests has rocketed by almost a fifth in a key division ahead of county-wide elections next month.

A total of 22,435 people have been sent a postal vote in East Devon, a huge jump from the 18,865 who made such a request in the previous Devon County Council elections in 2021.

The East Devon district is significant because it will return the most councillors.

The district has nine divisions but two of those – Broadclyst and Exmouth – will return two councillors, the only ones out of the 58 being contested across Devon to do so.

This means East Devon will have 11 county councillors, with Teignbridge next with 10 followed by Exeter with nine. There are five other districts that have seats being contested.

At present, Broadclyst is represented by Councillor Henry Gent of the Green Party, and the Conservative Sara Randall-Johnson, while Exmouth has two Conservative councillors, Richard Scott and Jeffrey Trail.

The district’s other seven councillors at present consist of six Conservative members and one independent.

The Broadclyst division in being contested in the May 1 election by the following candidates:

Brian Arthur Bailey (Conservative), Henry Gent (Green), Andrea Glover (Liberal Democrat), Lisa Goudie (Heritage Party), Fernando Gundin (Reform UK), Kian Healy (Labour), Molly Jane Holmes (Labour), Kate Jago (Green), Eleanor Rylance (Liberal Democrat), Cynthia Thompson (Conservative), Nat Vanstone (Reform UK)

The Exmouth division is being contested in the May 1 election by the following candidates:

Anne Hilary Ackland (Labour and Co-operative), Helen Brown (Reform UK), Lou Doliczny (Green), Si Fermor (Reform UK), Matt Hall (Liberal Democrat), Ben Anthony Hawkes (Labour), Fran McElhone (Liberal Democrat), Richard Scott (Conservative), Jeff Trail (Conservative), Daniel Wilson (Independent)