What are Senators?
To be nominated for Senator, a candidate must produce a nomination paper signed by 10 registered electors. The proposer usually attends the Electoral Assembly (nomination meeting) held at the Town Hall in St. Helier and reads out the nomination form. The candidate’s declaration of criminal convictions (or of no criminal convictions) is also read out at this meeting. At each general election 6 Senators are elected. [ Source : Elextions 2008 ] The post of Senator was created after a major reform of the States in 1946. Elected on an island wide basis they were viewed as the senior members of the house, and traditionally they were given the top jobs. But times have changed. Many ‘take’ for senator before having served an apprenticeship as a deputy. And although all but one of the current ministers are senators, in recent years more and more deputies and constables have headed up major departments.
