Campaign for a Democratically Elected Mayor of Croydon (DEMOC)
Attend the Public Launch of DEMOC Wednesday 5th February at the Christchurch Primary School, Montpelier Road, Purley, CR8 2QE, at 8.15 pm closing at 9.45 pm.
Local Residents’ Associations (RAs) from all parts of the borough have become so frustrated at the way the current council administration is treating the residents of Croydon, they have come together to form a campaign to change the way the leader of the council is elected.
The current role of Leader of the Council, would be replaced by a Mayor, directly elected by residents, instead of being chosen by councillors. An elected leader would be more accountable and need to engage with all residents from across the borough.
The DEMOC team emphasise that this is not a party-political initiative. There have been Croydon Council leadership teams of both parties in the past that have behaved reasonably and listened to the issues that the residents have raised, even if the residents live in a ward that did not vote for them.
At present, councillors from the majority party elect the leader, currently Mr. Tony Newman. The current arrangement is open to cronyism and back slapping. Tony Newman is maintained in power by 22 councillors. There are just 4 swing wards that really count toward maintaining a majority, and it is the residents of those wards that are listened to. The residents of other wards (both north and south) are often ignored.
KENDRA is supporting the DEMOC campaign. Changing the current system is not straightforward. But it is possible.
First, enough residents need to sign the petition, which will force the council to hold a referendum. Second, the referendum has to be won, albeit by a simple majority. Third, residents have to elect a new mayor.
Further information – go to the DEMOC campaign website www.democ.org.uk
Only residents registered to vote in Croydon are eligible to sign this petition.
Unfortunately signing the petition cannot be done online as Croydon Council does not permit the submission of online petitions, so it must be done on paper formats.
If you want to download and print your own petition to sign, please read the notes carefully, as it states ‘the text and design have gone through a stringent approvals process and therefore must not be modified in any way’ and there are many conditions that must be met.
There is a lot of additional information available on-line and you can register to receive updates via email. The DEMOC team is also asking for donations and we ask that you consider donating directly to the campaign.