# Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner

The Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner is the police and crime commissioner, an elected official tasked with setting out the way crime is tackled by Sussex Police in the English County of Sussex. The post was created on 21 November 2012, following an election held on 15 November 2012, and replaced the Sussex Police Authority. The current commissioner is Conservative Party politician Katy Bourne, who is currently serving her fourth term in office, having first been elected in 2012 and having been re-elected in 2016, 2021 and 2024. The police and crime commissioner is required to produce a strategic Sussex Police and Crime Plan, setting out the priorities for Sussex Police, and their work is scrutinised by the Sussex Police and Crime Panel.
The post was the first to be elected on a Sussex-wide basis since 1832 when the Sussex parliamentary constituency was replaced by constituencies for Sussex's eastern and western divisions.

## List of Sussex Police and Crime Commissioners

| Name | Political party | Political party | From | To |
| Katy Bourne | | Conservative | 22 November 2012 | Incumbent |

## Elections

The Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner is elected by the first past the post method for a fixed term of four years, although the inaugural term of the post was for three and a half years, and the 2016-2021 term was five years, owing to the 2020 election being delayed a year by the coronavirus pandemic. Elections to the post previously used the supplementary vote method, but this was changed in May of 2023.

### 2024

2024 Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner Election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | Katy Bourne | 122,495 | 39.00% | -8.28% |
| Labour | Paul Richards | 99,502 | 31.69% | +13.1% |
| Liberal Democrats | Jamie Bennett | 48,923 | 15.58% | +1.64% |
| Green | Johnathan Kent | 43,105 | 13.73% | +0.33% |
| Turnout: | Turnout: | 314,025 | 24.49% | -11.28% |

### 2021

2021 Sussex police and crime commissioner election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | 1st round | 1st round | 2nd round | 2nd round | 2nd round | 1st round votesTransfer votes, 2nd round |
| Party | Party | Candidate | Total | Of round | Transfers | Total | Of round | 1st round votesTransfer votes, 2nd round |
| | Conservative | Katy Bourne* | 214,523 | 47.28% | 30,287 | 244,810 | 65.62% | ​​ |
| | Labour | Paul Richards | 84,736 | 18.68% | 43,523 | 128,259 | 34.38% | ​​ |
| | Liberal Democrats | Jamie Bennett | 63,271 | 13.94% | | | | ​​ |
| | Green | Kahina Bouhassane | 60,781 | 13.40% | | | | ​​ |
| | Independent | Roy Williams | 30,408 | 6.70% | | | | ​​ |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | | 35.77% | | | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold |

### 2016

Katy Bourne won re-election only after second preference votes were counted, with Michael Jones coming second. Voter turnout was higher than in 2012 at 22.6 per cent. The central count was held at the East Sussex National Golf Course near Uckfield.
Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner election, 2016 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | 1st round | 1st round | 2nd round | 2nd round | 2nd round | 1st round votesTransfer votes, 2nd round |
| Party | Party | Candidate | Total | Of round | Transfers | Total | Of round | 1st round votesTransfer votes, 2nd round |
| | Conservative | Katy Bourne | 114,570 | 41.8% | 24,765 | 139,335 | | ​​ |
| | Labour | Michael Jones | 61,017 | 22.3% | 25,375 | 86,392 | | ​​ |
| | UKIP | Patrick Lowe | 43,075 | 15.7% | | | | ​​ |
| | Liberal Democrats | James Walsh | 29,550 | 10.8% | | | | ​​ |
| | Green | James Doyle | 26,038 | 9.5% | | | | ​​ |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 274,250 | 22.54% | | | | |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | | | | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | | | | | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | | | | | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold |

### 2012

The inaugural election took place on 21 November 2012 and was won by Katy Bourne. Voter turnout was 15.8 per cent.
Sussex Commissioner election, 2012 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | 1st round | 1st round | 2nd round | 2nd round | 2nd round | 1st round votesTransfer votes, 2nd round |
| Party | Party | Candidate | Total | Of round | Transfers | Total | Of round | 1st round votesTransfer votes, 2nd round |
| | Conservative | Katy Bourne | 59,635 | 32% | 20,393 | 80,028 | | ​​ |
| | Labour | Godfrey Daniel | 40,765 | 22% | 14,837 | 55,602 | | ​​ |
| | Independent | Ian Chisnall | 38,930 | 21% | | | | ​​ |
| | UKIP | Tony Armstrong | 29,327 | 15% | | | | ​​ |
| | Liberal Democrats | David Rogers | 20,579 | 11% | | | | ​​ |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 189,236 | 15.3% | | | | |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 5,982 | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 195,218 | | |
| | Conservative win | Conservative win | Conservative win | Conservative win | Conservative win | Conservative win | Conservative win | Conservative win |