Thinking about starting a political party?

If you know people with similar political views, you may decide to set up a political party to help get your views heard. Forming a political party will help to show Islanders that you are a group of people with a common view of how you think Jersey should be run.

Your party does not need to include someone who is already an elected States Member and it is not necessary for all party members to stand for election in the future.

There are currently two political parties in Jersey:

Reform Jersey

Jersey Liberal Conservatives

Where to start?

To create your own party, you will need to apply to the Royal Court and the Attorney General via the Judicial Greffe (note: not the States Assembly Greffe). The Judicial Greffe doesn’t have any decision-making role in approving the application, but you can contact them for further information about the application process and the necessary forms.

The guidelines around setting up your party are set out in the Political Parties (Registration) (Jersey) Law which details how to set up a political party and also its ongoing administration.

Some areas you might want to consider:

  • The party must have three office holders (a Chair, Treasurer and Secretary) and one person can hold a maximum of two of those offices. This means your party must contain at least two individuals and they must also be registered on the electoral role in Jersey.
  • The name of the party can’t exceed six words, and it and the emblem, mustn’t be offensive, obscene, or otherwise inappropriate. It also can’t be identical or too similar to the name or emblem of any other organisation, in order to avoid confusion. You will need to submit the name and emblem with the application.
  • The party must have an address in Jersey.
  • The party must have a written constitution and one of the objectives must be the endorsement of candidates for election as Deputy or Connétable. This will need to be submitted with the application.
  • You will need to keep accounts for the party and the accounting period can’t exceed 12 months. A copy of the most recent accounts must be submitted with the application.
  • You will need to pay a fee to apply to register a party.

For further information contact the Judicial Greffe jgreffe@courts.je

Read the law in full here: Political Parties (Registration) (Jersey) Law