Should Plymouth have a directly elected Mayor?
The City Council will ask residents in a referendum this summer
Last updated 28th Apr 2025
A referendum's to be held this summer (17th July) in Plymouth, asking residents if we think the city should have a directly elected Mayor.
The vote follows the verification of a petition signed by nearly 11,000 people being submitted to the local authority, calling for changes.
The numbers meet the threshold of at least 5% of the local registered electors, and so a ballot will be called - now it's had approval from a Full Council meeting today (Monday 28th April).
Plymouth City Council say the referendum would ask those on the electoral register to have their say on whether the authority's governance model should be changed from a leader model to a directly elected mayor.
This process is separate from – and not related to – the ongoing discussions about Plymouth potentially joining a combined regional authority that could be led by an elected strategic mayor.
The vote will take place on Thursday 17th July - and there's a few dates we need to know ahead of that:
• Deadline to register to vote: 1st July 2025
• Deadline to apply or change a postal vote: 5.00pm on 2nd July 2025
• Deadline to apply for Voter Authority Certificate: 5.00pm on 9th July 2025
• Deadline to apply for a proxy vote: 5.00pm on 9th July 2025.
We're also reminded that it's now a requirement to take photo ID with you when you vote in any election.