Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority: A look ahead to the mayoral election this spring

The Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) mayoral election will take place in four months.

It will be the first mayoral election of the region to use the first past the post system, following the Elections Act 2022.

As of January 2, 2025, only two parties have put candidates forward for the election on May 1.

The current mayor, Dr Nik Johnson, reportedly plans to stand for re-election in May as the Labour and Co-operative candidate.

Dr Johnson was elected as the second mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough in May 2021 when he defeated Conservative incumbent James Palmer, who was the mayor from 2017.

Former Peterborough MP Paul Bristow has been selected as the Conservative candidate for this year’s mayoral election.

Mr Bristow had been Peterborough MP from the end of 2019 until July 2024, when he lost his seat by 118 votes to Labour’s Andrew Pakes.

Other parties have yet to announce their candidates.

What does the mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough do?

The mayor of the combined authority is a very different role to the mayor of Peterborough – a title currently held by Councillor Marco Cereste.

While the mayors of towns and cities such as Wisbech and March have a largely ceremonial role, the mayor of CPCA is elected by voters and has much greater power.

These powers, devolved from central government, are held over areas such as transport, skills and planning across the whole combined authority region.

The mayor, currently Dr Nik Johnson, leads the authority and oversees a £20 million annual budget devolved from government.

They also have devolved powers to spend up to £800 million on local housing, infrastructure and jobs.

The mayor is responsible for a multi-year devolved transport budget and a key route network of roads.

They can also franchise bus services in the area, which has recently been proposed by Dr Johnson.

A combined authority mayor makes important decisions for the region and can provide a single, clear point of accountability.

CPCA brings together seven local authorities: Cambridge City Council, Cambridgeshire County Council, East Cambridgeshire District Council, Fenland District Council, Huntingdonshire District Council, Peterborough City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council.

The authority recently welcomed £10 million extra funding from the government for roads and potholes.