Rushen (2011)

House of Keys general election on September 29, 2011.

About Rushen (2011)
The constituency of Rushen is in the far south of the Isle of Man and is made up of the parishes of Rushen and Arbory, and the villages of Port Erin and Port St Mary. It has borders with Glenfaba to the north, Malew and Santon, mainly to the east, and Castletown to the southeast. At the time of the 2006 census it was the second most populated constituency, after Onchan, the only other voting area represented by three members in the House of Keys. Port Erin and Port St Mary are both traditional fishing villages, while heritage attractions include the folk museum at Cregneash and the spectacular scenery, and visitor centre and restaurant, at the Sound. Notable recent MHKs include Sir Miles Walker, the first chief minister of the Isle of Man, who held his seat for 20 years from 1976, and Noel Cringle, who stood down as the second president of Tynwald in 2011, after holding the position for eleven years. Quintin Gill is the longest serving of the three current MHKs, having served the constituency since 2001. Phil Gawne won a by-election in 2003 and Juan Watterson topped the poll in the 2006 general election.

Number of Constituents (2011)
6199

Number of Seats (2011)
3

Census Information (2011)
The constituency of Rushen had a population of 8,802 at the time of the 2006 census, with 1,591 people in the parish of Rushen, 1,723 in the parish of Arbory, 3,575 in the village of Port Erin, and 1,913 in the village of Port St Mary. In the 2006 general election the turnout in Rushen was 64.8 per cent, the third highest of the 14 constituencies in which there were contests, after Glenfaba (75.13 per cent) and Ramsey (66.63 per cent). Seventy per cent of the population was of voting age.

Candidates declared (2011)

Phil Gawne (2011)

Status: Sitting Member

Standing As: Independent - not affiliated to any political party
Quintin Gill (2011)

Status: Sitting Member

Standing As: Independent - not affiliated to any political party
David Jones - LVP (2011)

Status: Challenger

Standing As: Independent - not affiliated to any political party
John Orme (2011)

Status: Challenger

Standing As: Independent - not affiliated to any political party
Laurence Skelly (2011)

Status: Challenger

Standing As: Independent - not affiliated to any political party
Juan Watterson (2011)

Status: Sitting Member

Standing As: Independent - not affiliated to any political party