Election 2021: Meet the candidates - who will get your vote?

On 6 May Scotland will decide who should form its next parliament. People have two votes; the first will elect the constituency MSP who will represent Shetland in the new parliament for the next five years, and the second will select seven additional Highlands & Islands MSPs based on party lists.

This electoral system makes the Scottish Parliament more representative of the views of Scotland’s population. There are a total of 73 constituency MSPs and 56 list MSPs in the Scottish Parliament.

Below are the details and election statements of the six Shetland constituency candidates (the first vote). Further down the page we have published details of the lead candidates seeking to represent the Highlands & Islands area (relevant for the second vote).

Home / Features / Election 2021 - Constituency Candidates
Constituency Candidates / Beatrice WishartScottish Liberal Democrats

Representing Shetland in the Scottish Parliament has been the greatest honour of my life. In my first speech in Parliament in September 2019 I said I was ambitious for Shetland. Who knew back then that we would be entering the 2021 elections after a year in a global pandemic which has ripped through our community.

As we emerge from lockdown and towards a brighter future…

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Constituency Candidates / Peter TaitIndependent

On Wednesday evening 31 March I was asked to respond to journalist queries from Radio Shetland, Shetland News, and the Shetland Times all within about 20 minutes.

I told them all that I had nothing prepared and I did not want to respond at that time. They insisted on getting copy and I made a few short statements.  I have no hard copies of these statements and I am therefore not responding to any subsequent comments…

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Constituency Candidates / Brian NugentRestore Scotland

Brian Nugent is 68, is married with three children in their 20s, the family have lived in Hamanvoe, Burra for nearly 30 years, a retired FE lecturer, a former trades union Secretary for the EIS FELA at Shetland College, so used to representing people, a bank (relief) porter at Gilbert Bain hospital, a Monday volunteer at Shetland Foodbank, a passkeeper at St Margarets, Lerwick, a supporter of Albion Rovers Football Club and the club historian…

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Constituency Candidates / Martin KerrScottish Labour

I’ve never stood for election before but I believe I have the right experience – as a lawyer and a campaigner – to represent you well.

We need politicians with a laser focus on securing the Covid recovery and addressing inequalities within our society. That’ll be Scottish Labour’s focus in the next Parliament.

The last year has been tough for us all. The pandemic has separated us…

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Constituency Candidates / Tom WillsSNP

I’m asking folk in Shetland to put their trust in me as their MSP, because I want to help Shetland reach its full potential. Whatever your politics and whether we agree or disagree, I will always listen and take your case to the heart of government. You can trust me to speak my mind and put our community first.

Shetland is blessed with natural resources and as we decarbonise our economy, we should learn…

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Constituency Candidates / Nick TullochScottish Conservative and Unionist

If elected as your MSP I will spend the next five years fighting on the issues that I believe really matter for people here.

Above all, that means securing jobs and livelihoods, as our country recovers from the enormous impact of the Covid pandemic.

We cannot hope to retain our young people, and keep our communities strong and sustainable, without well-paying jobs…

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Home / Features / Election 2021 - Highlands & Islands Lead Candidates
Election 2021 / Emma RoddickSNP

Emma Roddick is a councillor in the Highlands, currently serving as the SNP Group’s Spokesperson for Housing.

She is also a mental health activist, having run several national campaigns to raise awareness and make accessing services easier for those in acute crisis.

Before being elected, she worked in the Scottish Ambulance Service covering the Highlands, Islands, Aberdeen and Grampian…

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Election 2021 / Robert StephensonUKIP

The forthcoming elections to the Scottish Parliament on 6 May will be a historic opportunity. You will be presented this time with a real alternative. A choice to abolish the Holyrood complex and confine separatism to the fringes of Scottish politics.

UKIP is fighting this election on a platform to hold a referendum to abolish the devolved government which threatens the very existence of the United Kingdom…

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Election 2021 / Rhoda GrantScottish Labour

The Scottish Labour Party is offering a range of talents to represent you on the regional ballot. Along with experienced politicians, we have a care worker, artist, teacher and a small business owner. A wealth of knowledge and experience.

I am Rhoda Grant and I have had the privilege of representing you in the Scottish Parliament for 18 years, be it fighting for a better deal for crofters, supporting your necessary aspiration for an MRI scanner…

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Election 2021 / Douglas RossConservative

My name is Douglas Ross and I am leader of the Scottish Conservatives and MP for Moray.

I have been involved in politics since I was first elected as a councillor in Moray back in 2007. Before that I was a farm labourer and agriculture is a passion I have continued to take an interest in as an elected representative.

I approached that job in the same way that I have approached every…

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Election 2021 / Sean RobertsonScottish Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC)

Sean Robertson, a NHS worker and anti-cuts campaigner from Easter Ross has been announced as the lead candidate for the Scottish Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) on the Highlands and Islands regional list:

“A GMB member I am an experienced anti-austerity and socialist campaigner, having led the successful Highlands…

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Election 2021 / Hazel G MansfieldEnd Violence Against Women (EVAW)

I am protesting to End Violence Against Women by standing as a candidate for Scottish Parliament to speak for myself, and to change the 30/70 by one more voice.

I will stand as a Regional Candidate for the Highlands & Islands on 6 May. Vote for Hazel G Mansfield.

A bit outraged by how few women are standing for political office…

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Election 2021 / Sandra SkinnerReform UK Scotland

Spending my formative years in Lanarkshire I left school at sixteen to work in retail and hospitality.

As a mature student, in 1989 I graduated from Glasgow University with a BEng Engineering before moving to Easter Ross. I subsequently completed LLM Construction Law at Strathclyde University while at home with my young children.
During my twenty-year career in the Offshore Fabrication Industry…

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Election 2021 / Alan ReidScottish Liberal Democrats

I represented Argyll & Bute in the House of Commons for fourteen years. This is a constituency with many islands and so I am familiar with the issues that arise on islands.

Liberal Democrats want to concentrate all our efforts on recovery from the Covid pandemic. It will take all our combined efforts, ingenuity and commitment to recover from the pandemic…

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Constituency Candidates / Brian NugentRestore Scotland

Brian Nugent is 68, is married with three children in their 20s, the family have lived in Hamanvoe, Burra for nearly 30 years, a retired FE lecturer, a former trades union Secretary for the EIS FELA at Shetland College, so used to representing people, a bank (relief) porter at Gilbert Bain hospital, a Monday volunteer at Shetland Foodbank, a passkeeper at St Margarets, Lerwick, a supporter of Albion Rovers Football Club and the club historian…

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Election 2021 / Ariane BurgessScottish Greens

I live and work in the Highlands. I’m originally from Edinburgh, where I grew up hearing stories of my Shetland great-grandmother, who left to find work in the city as a young woman.

I am standing because too many decisions are made in Edinburgh that impact those of us who live rurally and on the islands but take little account of our communities’ views. I want to be a voice for our communities in the Scottish…

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Full list of Highlands and Islands Region Candidates

ABOLISH THE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT PARTY
JACK MALCOLM

ALBA PARTY
KIRK TORRANCE; CRAIG BERRY; JOSH ROBERTSON; JUDITH REID

ALL FOR UNITY
MOIRA RAMAGE; PATRICIA WATSON; ROBBIE GORDON MUNRO; DONALD MACLEOD BOYD; PAUL BURROWS; ALASTAIR KENNEDY; PAUL BRADBURN

FREEDOM ALLIANCE - INTEGRITY, SOCIETY, ECONOMY
TINA DEBORAH MCCAFFERY; EMMA ALICE IDZIKOWSKA; PHIL BREED; GARY ALAN CHEESMAN; ANNE MCCLOSKEY

REFORM UK
SANDRA SKINNER; ARTHUR LESLIE DURANCE; KATE BROWNLIE; CATHERINE ELIZABETH MARY MOUNT

RESTORE SCOTLAND
BRIAN NUGENT; ANDREW ROSS MACDONALD

SCOTTISH CONSERVATIVE AND UNIONIST PARTY
DOUGLAS ROSS; EDWARD MOUNTAIN; DONALD CAMERON; JAMIE HALCRO JOHNSTON; TIM EAGLE; ELLA ROBERTSON McKAY; STRUAN MACKIE; SAM BOWN; GAVIN BERKENHEGER; NICK TULLOCH

SCOTTISH FAMILY PARTY
MICHAEL DENNIS WILLIS; PHILIPP TANZER; SHENA MARGARET McLELLAND; SOPHIE GENEVIEVE MARIE HENDRY; DOLORES VERONICA HUGHES

SCOTTISH GREEN PARTY
ARIANE CLAIRE BURGESS; ANNE KATHERINE THOMAS; FABIO VILLANI; STEVE SANKEY; DEBRA JANE NICOLSON; SAND OWSNETT; TOPHER DAWSON; LISA JANE MEAD; CHRIS BALLANCE; ISABELLA ROSA LILIAN SUMSION; PHYL STUART MEYER; LUNA ERIN LAVENTHIA MARTIN

SCOTTISH LABOUR PARTY
RHODA GRANT; JOHN ROBERT ERSKINE; MARION DONALDSON; JOANNE KIRBY; COILLA DRAKE; LEWIS IAN WHYTE; SHAUN ALEXANDER FRASER

SCOTTISH LIBERAL DEMOCRATS
ALAN REID; MOLLY CUSICK NOLAN; DENIS RIXSON; WILLIAM JOHN SINCLAIR; SHEILA EWAN RITCHIE; DAVID THOMAS GREGG; NEIL MITCHISON

SCOTTISH LIBERTARIAN PARTY
HARRY CHRISTIAN; CALUM MARK LIPTROT

SCOTTISH NATIONAL PARTY (SNP)
EMMA RODDICK; KATE FORBES; MAREE TODD; FERGUS EWING; TOM WILLS; MIKE MACKENZIE; ROBERT LESLIE; RHIANNON SPEAR; JAMIE SZYMKOWIAK; QASIM HANIF; KEN GOWANS; SARAH FANET

SCOTTISH TRADE UNIONIST AND SOCIALIST COALITION
SEAN ALEXANDER ROBERTSON; YOLANDA PIOTROWICZ; LUKE IVORY

UK INDEPENDENCE PARTY (UKIP)
ROBERT STEPHENSON; ROBERT SCORER; MICHAEL PAUL BURGER DE FRÉMOL; DUNCAN GEDDES; ALAN JOHN BREEZE; BRYAN GEORGE FOSTER

MANSFIELD, HAZEL
Independent

WIGHTMAN, ANDY
Independent