Panic began to spread in the Bristol Cable office as rumours swirled of a summer general election. Since a drenched Rishi Sunak called the election, we’ve gotten over the shock, sprung into action, and made a plan for covering the election in depth. 

We’re going to be writing comprehensive profiles of the key battleground constituencies, digging into dubious donations and dodgy campaign tactics, speaking to key orgs in the city about the big issues of the election, and letting the Labour and Green candidates fight it out for Bristol Central with a special Bristol Unpacked debate. 

But first, we wanted to bring you the basics. What seats are there in and around Bristol? Who’s running to become your MP? Could Bristol produce the Green’s second ever MP? And do Labour really have a chance of winning seats of the Tories on Bristol’s outskirts?

Here’s your ultimate Cable guide to get your head into the 2024 general election and what it means for Bristol.

The constituencies

Bristol Central

Bristol Central, which is replacing Bristol West, will be a key battleground between Labour and the Greens. It’s one of the Greens’ top target seats following strong results there at this year’s local elections.

What was the result last time?

The sitting MP

Labour’s Thangam Debbonaire was first elected in Bristol West in 2015, and then won whopping majorities in 2017 and 2019 as support for Labour surged under Jeremy Corbyn. After run-ins with local Momentum activists and factional infighting plaguing the local party, she has become a loyal supporter of Keir Starmer. Since Starmer became Labour leader, she has had a series of prominent roles in the shadow cabinet, including Shadow Housing Secretary and Shadow Leader of the House of Commons. Going into the election, she is the Shadow Secretary for Culture, Media and Sport.

The challenger

Carla Denyer, a former Bristol councillor and current Green Party co-leader, is vying to become the party’s second ever MP in Westminster. She ran against Debbonaire in 2019, coming a distant second.   

What about the other parties?

Nicholas Coombes is running for the Lib Dems and Robert Clarke is standing for Reform UK. Samuel Williams, who previously ran to be Bristol mayor, announced on 2 June he’d been selected as the Conservative candidate. Kellie-Jay Keen is also now running for the Party of Women. The full candidate details can be found here.

Bristol Central will cover the city centre, Clifton, Hotwells, Cotham, Redland, Bishopston, St Pauls, St Andrews and St Werburghs, but it is losing a number of areas that used to be in Bristol West, including Easton, Lawrence Hill, Barton Hill, St Philips, Ashley Down and parts of Bishopston. 

Who’s gonna win? 

The Greens are campaigning hard to take Bristol Central and have previously argued that the boundary changes will boost their support further. At May’s local elections, the Greens won every single council seat in the new Bristol Central boundaries, but obviously local election results often don’t directly translate to general elections, and they will need a huge swing of nearly 19% from Labour to Green to overturn Debbonaire’s majority of nearly 28,000 votes. They will be hoping to scoop up the votes of those who are disillusioned with Labour and feel able to vote for a different party when Keir Starmer’s Labour Party look crush the Tories by a large majority anyway.

North East Somerset and Hanham

This seat on the south-east edge of Bristol has been held by Jacob-Rees Mogg since 2010, but Labour are so far ahead in the polls that this kind of rural seat, which felt like a pipe-dream for them in 2019, could go red this time around. 

What was the result last time?

The sitting MP

Jacob Rees-Mogg has become a figure that those on the left love to hate. MP for North East Somerset since 2010, the caricature of upper class toff who lives in an manor house in the Chew Valley, holds right wing views – anti-abortion, staunchly pro-Brexit, and even supportive of Donald Trump. In recent years, he has had his own show on GB News, which was recently found to have broken Ofcom impartiality rules. Presenting his State of the Nation programme has pocketed him around £350k in the last year alone, despite him already having an estimated net-worth of more than £100m. In the last few weeks, Rees-Mogg has called on the Tories to make a pact with Reform and give Nigel Farage a position in the government.

The challenger

The current mayor of West of England Dan Norris was recently selected as Labour’s candidate to take on Rees-Mogg. Norris was the MP for the area, when it was the constituency of Wansdyke from 2005-2010 until he lost to Rees-Mogg, so this election will see a rematch. Norris may have used his role as WECA mayor to re-enter the world of Westminster politics, but he’s hardly been a roaring success while in charge of the region. From falling out with Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees over differing visions for the region’s future public transport system and dragging his heels on taking more public control of buses and sitting on the fence on the issue of expanding Bristol Airport, to “unlawfully” spending £10,000 of taxpayers money to plaster buses with pictures of a him and his dog.

The other parties

Dine Romero is running for the Lib Dems, who came in narrow third behind Labour in 2019. Edmund Cannon is standing for the Greens, as is Paul MacDonnell is for Reform. Barmy Brunch is standing for the Official Monster Raving Loony Party and Nicholas Hales is an independent. Full details here.

Boundary changes

North East Somerset gains Hanham, Longwell Green, Warmley and Bitton, which used to be in the soon to be defunct Kingswood constituency, but loses the eastern part of the constituency south of Bath. 

Who’s gonna win?

In 2019, Rees-Mogg won a whopping majority of nearly 15,000 for the Tories, with Labour and the Lib Dems neck-and-neck in second and third. But such is the dire outlook for the Conservatives that Labour could well take this seat, which would require a 13% swing from the Tories to Labour. Rees-Mogg has been included in lists of famous Tory MPs who face losing their seats.

Filton and Bradley Stoke

This is another seat on the edge of Bristol that Labour will be looking to gain from the Tories. Hoards of Labour members canvassed hard here in 2017 and 2019 but this wasn’t enough to unseat sitting MP Jack Lopresti. 

What was the result last time?

The sitting MP

Jack Lopresti, the former Bristol City Councillor, army reservist and estate agent, was first elected as the Tory MP for Filton and Bradley Stoke in 2010. Lopresti is an enthusiastic supporter of the defence and arms industry, and Airbus, BAE systems and Elbit, as well as the MOD, have facilities in Filton. As reported by the Cable, Lopresti has been on multiple trips paid for by dictatorships, such as Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, as well as a guest at events hosted by a who’s who of multinational arms trade corporations with bases in the constituency. In 2019, he apologised to a former employee who accused him of bullying and harassment. He has previously accepted donations from a private jet mogul, and spoken out in support of Filton-based Elbit Systems UK, which designs weapons technology for Israel’s military.

The challenger

Claire Hazelgrove is standing for Labour in FIlton and Bradley Stoke. She brands herself as an experienced campaigner, and has worked for the Remain ‘Britain Stronger in Europe’ campaign during the EU referendum, Friends of the Earth and the Tony Blair Institute. 

What about the other parties?

Benet Allen is running for the Lib Dems, James William Nelson for the Greens and Gareth Watson for Reform. Full details here.Stephen James Burge

Boundary changes

Filton and Bradley Stoke is losing rural areas of Severn Beach, Pilning, Almondsbury, but gaining Emersons Green. 

Who’s gonna win? 

In 2019, Lopresti increased his majority from 4,000 to 5,500 despite lots of campaigning by Labour members. But this time around, a 5% swing from Labour to Tories would see the seat go red. 

North Somerset

This is a real Tory stronghold but could go red in the event of a Labour landslide. Could big beast Liam Fox lose his seat?

What was the result last time?

The sitting MP

Liam Fox has been the MP for North Somerset and its predecessor Woodspring for a whopping 32 years. The experienced MP has held a number of senior cabinet roles, including the Defence Secretary under David Cameron until he had to resign for giving access to ministerial meetings to a close friend who was a lobbyist. The Brexiteer later served as Secretary for International Trade under Theresa May after the EU referendum. 

During the MP expenses scandal, he had to repay £22k of money he’d claimed remortgaging his second home. Since 2019, Fox has received roughly £250k in donations from a variety of sources, prompting criticism from Labour. In 2022, he accepted a £20,000 donation from a Covid testing firm that he’d recommended to then health secretary Matt Hancock, before the company went on to win a contract worth £500m, according to the Good Law Project. Since the start of 2024, he’s already got £65k in donations, including £10k from Aquind, a firm currently trying to get a major infrastructure project approved by the government. In March, Fox was paid £7,700 for speaking at the International Futures Industry Conference in Florida. In 2023, he was paid £10,000 retainer fee by WorldPR for advisory services on business and international politics, but the amount of work he actually did over a six-month period was listed on his register of interests as zero hours. 

The challenger

Sadik Al-Hassan has been announced as Labour’s candidate for North Somerset. As a pharmacist, he is leading his campaign on how Labour would sort out the mess the NHS is in after 14 years of Tory-led governments. 

What about the other parties?

Ash Cartman, who is a North Somerset Councillor and came third in the 2019 general election, is standing for the Lib Dems. Alexander Kokkinoftas is running for Reform UK and Oscar Livesey Lodwick for the Greens. Suneil Basu for the Workers Party of Britain. Full details here.

The boundary changes

The constituency which pretty much maps onto the area of North Somerset Council, including places like Clevedon, Portishead, Weston-super-Mare, is staying largely the same. 

Who’s gonna win?

Different iterations of this constituency have elected Tory MPs since the war, so it would be a real scalp for Labour to win here. They would need a 14% swing to do that, which is big, but could be possible if the Tories remain so far behind in the polls. 

Bristol North East

This shiny new consistency will see the number of Bristol MPs grow to five. 

Boundary changes

Bristol North East is an amalgamation of bits of four other constituencies, Bristol North West, Bristol East, Filton and Bradley Stoke and Kingwood, a mixture of Labour and Tory strongholds based on recent elections. The constituency will span from Lockleaze and Eastville, through Stapleton and Fishponds to Staple Hill, Mangotsfield and Kingsood on Bristol’s eastern edge. 

Who is running?

The favourite to become the first MP of this new seat is Damien Egan, the former mayor of Lewisham who became the MP for Kingswood earlier this year, just months before the constituency became defunct. Egan, who grew up locally and had his varying accent come under scrutiny during the by-election campaign, was selected over former Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees to be Labour’s candidate.

The other party candidates are Lorraine Francis for the Greens who is currently a councillor for Eastville, Louise Harris for the Lib Dems, who has been a councillor in South Gloucestershire since 2018, Rose Hulse for the Tories, Anthony Michael New from Reform, and Tommy Trueman for the Social Democratic Party. TUSC – the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition – will be standing Dan Smart. And finally, Asif Ali is standing as an independent. Full details here.

Who’s gonna win?

Because it includes a big chunk of safe Labour seat Bristol East, inner city areas like Eastville and Lockleaze, Electoral Calculus predicts that if the seat had existed in 2019 it would have gone to Labour. Given that Starmer’s party are expected to make gains up and down the country, it’s hard to see them not taking Bristol North East.

Bristol North West

Historically, this constituency has flipped between Labour and the Conservatives, usually reflecting which party was in power. This was until 2017 when Labour took the seat. 

What was the result last time?

The sitting MP

Labour’s Darren Jones has been the MP since 2017. In his short parliamentary career, he has made quite a name for himself as chair of the House of Commons business and trade committee, by grilling and embarrassing CEOs, including asking the P&O Ferries boss, who had just overseen the sacking of hundreds of staff, “Are you in this mess because you don’t know what you’re doing? Or are you just a shameless criminal?” These days Jones is being wheeled out to talk to the media about Labour’s plans for the economy. His role of Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury basically means after the election he could become number two to the new Chancellor Rachel Reeves. He is therefore part of Labour’s attempt to appear like a safe pair of hands on the economy, in contrast with previous elections when manifestos have included ambitious spending pledges. He has talked about wanting to create an Office for Value for Money to crack down on wasted cash in the public sector. 

What about the other parties?

The Lib Dems and Greens are fielding two allies from the campaign to get rid of Bristol’s mayor a few years back – Caroline Gooch and Mary Page. Laura Saunders is running for the Conservatives, Scarlett O’Connor for Reform and Ben Smith for the Social Democratic Party. Full details here.

Boundary changes

Bristol North West is mostly staying the same, but is losing Lockleaze and gaining Ashley Down and part of Bishopston.

Who’s gonna win? 

It’s not that long ago that this was a tight Tory-Labour marginal, but it now seems that Jones is quite safe in his seat. The Tories would need a 5% swing to take the seat, which seems incredibly unlikely with them trailing Labour by 20 points in the polls. 

Bristol East

Bristol East has been a safe Labour seat for years and that’s not likely to change this time around. But the constituency’s shifting boundaries now means that some voters who switched over to the Greens in the local elections, might not back Labour.  

What was the result last time?

The sitting MP

Kerry McCarthy is Bristol’s most experienced MP after first being elected in 2005. She has had various roles in the shadow cabinet and on parliamentary committees, including. After being a vocal advocate for animal welfare, food waste and environmental issues, she became the Shadow Minister for Climate Change in 2022. 

What about the other parties?

Until recently, the Green candidate was Naseem Talukdar but he has since stepped down citing family reasons. He was criticised for sharing an image on social media comparing Benjamin Netanyahu to Hitler, which the Green Party was investigating, but it seems he has made his own decision to step down. Councillor Ani Stafford-Townsend has been named as the replacement Green candidate, while Tony Sutcliffe is standing for the Lib Dems, Clare Dunnage for the Social Democratic Party and Dan Conaghan for the Tories. Farooq Ahmed Siddique and Wael Mustapha Arafat are both running as independents. Full details here

Boundary changes

Bristol East is gaining Easton, Lawrence Hill, Barton Hill, St Philips, and Knowle, but losing Eastville, Stapleton, Fishponds and Hillfields. 

Who’s gonna win? 

Bristol East is likely to be a safe Labour seat again but that doesn’t mean it won’t be an interesting seat to watch. We could see the Greens get more votes than last time around after May’s local elections where they won seats in Lawrence Hill, Easton, Knowle and St George. There has been vocal criticism in Barton Hill for how the outgoing Labour council handled the Barton House evacuation, and some Muslim voters have felt let down by Labour for failing to call for a ceasefire in Gaza. 

Bristol South

Bristol South has had a Labour MP for nearly 100 years, so you don’t get much more of a safer seat than this.

What was the result last time?

The sitting MP

Karin Smyth, who has been the Labour MP since 2015, is now the shadow minister for health which is appropriate given her previous career working in the NHS. She has pledged to crack down on wasted cash in the NHS, because the public is currently “paying more and getting less” due to lack of reforms under the Conservatives.

What about the other parties?

Jai Breitnauer, who recently had an unsuccessful bid to become a local councillor, is running for the Greens. Lib Dem councillor Andrew Brown is standing, too. And the other party candidates are Liz Brennan for the Tories, Joji Mathew for the Workers Party of Great Britain, Neil Norton for the Social Democratic Party and Richard Visick for Reform. Full details here.

Boundary changes

Bristol South is staying largely the same, except Knowle, which is becoming part of Bristol East. 

Who’s gonna win? 

Despite the Green Party having strong support in Bedminster, Southville and Windmill Hill at the local elections, this is as safe as it gets for Labour. 

Key dates

• Final lists of candidates to be announced: 7 June
• Deadline for registering to vote: 18 June 
• Deadline for applying for a postal vote: 19 June 
• Deadline for applying for a proxy vote: 26 June 
• Deadline for applying for a Voter Authority Certificate: 26 June
• Election day: 4 July