By Ethan Davies, Local Democracy Reporter

Election officials have issued a statement explaining why the list of mayoral candidates changed after the deadline for nominations closed.

On Friday (April 5), the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) — the public body which runs the mayor's office and its elections — issued a Statement of Agents list. That included seven candidates, namely Don Prof Reis Abraham Halliwell PRF, Jake Austin, Dan Barker, Nick Buckley, Andy Burnham, Laura Evans, and Hannah Spencer.

However, when the formal Statement of Persons Nominated was issued on Monday (April 8), it omitted the first candidate — Don Prof Reis Abraham Halliwell PRF. The returning officer for the GMCA, its chief executive Eamonn Boylan, has now moved to explain why.

A spokesperson for Mr Boylan said that Don Prof Reis Abraham Halliwell Prf registered with an election agent ahead of the deadline, but did not receive enough signatures to make it on to the ballot paper in that timeframe. That meant they appeared on the list of agents, but not the list of nominees.

Both mayoral and local council elections take place on 2 May (Image - Joseph Timan)

"The nominations process for the Greater Manchester Combined Authority Mayoral Election began on Wednesday March 27 and closed at 4pm Friday April 5," the spokesperson said. "To be validly nominated in law a candidate is required to submit, by hand, the proper documentation and to pay a £5,000 deposit, in accordance with the details provided on the Notice of Election.

"Each candidate's nomination paper must contain 10 valid subscribers from each of the 10 districts of Greater Manchester, totalling a combined 100 subscribers. Shortly before the deadline on Friday April 5, the candidate known as Don Prof Reis Abraham Halliwell PRF submitted a nomination paper to the Combined Authority Returning Officer's staff. When a candidate submits a nomination paper in this way they will be added to the published Statement of Agents irrespective of whether the nomination is valid.

"After formal acceptance, but before receipt of the £5,000 deposit, it was confirmed that the nomination paper did not contain the required number of subscribers. The nomination paper was subsequently determined by the Deputy Combined Authority Returning Officer as invalid, on the grounds it was not subscribed as required by law."

Manchester as seen from the Fallowfield Loop (Image - Alasdair Perry)

The Greater Manchester mayoral election takes place on May 2, 2024, with the list of candidates on the ballot paper including Jake Austin (LIB DEM), Dan Barker (REFORM), Nick Buckley (IND), Andy Burnham (LAB), Laura Evans (CON), and Hannah Spencer (GREEN).

Voters must be registered in Greater Manchester's 10 boroughs — Bolton, Bury, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, and Wigan — and aged 18 or over on polling day to cast their ballot.

You can register to vote online here, or access a form to register by post here. The deadline to register to vote is 11:59pm on April 16. 

Residents will need a photo ID to vote, with a list of accepted forms here. If you do not have any of the accepted forms of ID, you can apply for a free Voter Authority Certificate online here until 5pm on April 24.

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