Selection of the Chief Minister and Council of Ministers

The Chief Minister

The Chief Minister is the head of Jersey's government, the Council of Ministers. The States Assembly chooses the Chief Minister from elected members. It is the first thing the Assembly does after a general election. The States of Jersey Law 2005 and the Standing Orders of the States of Jersey describe the rules for choosing the Chief Minister.

Any elected member can be Chief Minister.  It does not matter whether they are a Senator, Connétable or Deputy. Before the first meeting after an election, elected members nominate who they think should be Chief Minister. At least 6 members have to sign the nomination. The nominated member must write a statement to explain their strategic vision for Jersey and how they would act as Chief Minister. 

At the first meeting of the Assembly, the nominations are read out. Every candidate makes a statement of up to 10 minutes and faces up to 1 hour of questions from other members – even if there is only one candidate. 

If there is only one candidate, that person becomes Chief Minister designate. If there is more than one candidate, the Assembly chooses. Members choose by recorded vote so it is possible to see who has voted for each candidate. The successful candidate becomes Chief Minister designate.

The Council of Ministers

At the second meeting after an election, the Chief Minister designate puts forward the elected members they would like to be Ministers. For each ministerial position, other members can also make nominations. In every case, each candidate makes a statement of up to 10 minutes and faces questions for up to 20 minutes. 

If there is only one candidate, they are declared the Minister. If there is more than one candidate, there is a vote and elected members choose who they want to be Ministers. It is therefore possible for the Assembly to choose someone as Minister whom the Chief Minister designate did not want.

Once all the Ministers have been chosen, the Council of Ministers is formed. It is at that point that the member chosen as Chief Minister officially takes up the positon.

The Deputy Chief Minister

Once the Assembly has chosen the Council of Ministers, the Chief Minister must choose one Minister to be Deputy Chief Minister. The Chief Minister must tell the Assembly about their choice. The Deputy Chief Minister acts as Chief Minister when the Chief Minister is absent or incapacitated.