The nomination process has now been completed, and Notices of Poll have been issued for each of the 12 constitutencies.

None of the 12 constituencies are uncontested. Instead, with 83 candidates standing, this is a year in which the electorate have an unusually broad choice. At the last general election 65 candidates came foward, and in the one before that, 63. So a 28% rise in the number of candidates coming forward this time. Indeed, it is a record number of candidates, with the next highest being the 73 of 1991 – one of the two General Elections held under an alternative electoral system, both of which had an unusually high number of candidates come forward. We need to go back to 1976 to find the next highest number under the first past the post system: 71 candidates.

Of these candidates, 15 are incumbents – that is, candidates who were MHKs in the same seat before the Keys were dissolved in August, and who are seeking reelection. So, 62% of MHKs in the last Tynwald have decided to run for relection. This is not unusual in the Manx system – for instance this number was 79% in 2001, and 67% at the last election. Incumbents tend to be elected in greater numbers than new candidates across the world, and across other small democracies. Aggregating all Manx General Elections since 1919, we find a 78% success rate for incumbents, and 46% for candidates as a whole. Not every constituency has been offered a chance to reelect a sitting MHK however – neither of the former Glenfaba MHKs has come forward; and in 7 of the other constitutencies only one incumbent is standing. Although not an incumbent, Martyn Perkins is returning to contest the seat in Garff which he held until the last General Election.

Turning to gender, 26 women are standing, with at least one woman standing in every constituency. This is a record number of women candidates – the next highest being the 16 who came forward in 2021. In the 2021 election, women were 25% of the candidates, in this election 31%. Viewed across the entire period for which women have been eligible to be MHKs, success rates for women and men tend to be very much the same, once the decision has been made to stand. At 53%, a high proportion of the incumbents standing are women. Combining the incumbency effect with the increased number of women candidates, it is not unlikely we will see an increase on the number of women MHKs in 2026, even on the record number elected in 2021.

Finally, in relation to parties, five political parties were registered to support candidates in this election. The Green Party has not fielded any candidates. The Manx Labour Party, the only party to have contested every General Election since 1919, has fielded four. Liberal Vannin has fielded four. Transform Isle of Man has fielded two (both in the same constituency). The Change Movement has fielded five. Combined, these 15 party candidates represent 18% of the candidates, and a similar percentage of the incumbents standing. This is in line with the role of parties in 21st century General Elections, and indeed since the 1970s. Given that party endorsement does not translate to an unusually high level of electoral success, it is likely that the House of Keys will remain a chamber dominated by Independents.