Reform leaders in Norfolk are applying fresh pressure for the election for the first mayor of Norfolk and Suffolk to be brought forward to next year.
The public is due to go to the polls to pick the first person to fill the cross-county role in May 2028.
But senior councillors at County Hall are keen for it to happen sooner. In July, they wrote to Andy Burnham, before he was prime minister, asking him to bring it forward to May next year.
They have now followed it up with a further request to the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Elections for the post were due to take place earlier this year, but were delayed by the government until May 2028.
That was so both counties could focus on scrapping their councils and replacing them with unitary authorities.
However, those decisions, which would have seen all councils in Norfolk and Suffolk scrapped and replaced by new ones, have since been withdrawn by Labour ministers as part of a wider review of local government reorganisation.
But the separate devolution process, which includes the creation of an elected mayor for the two counties, is still in the pipeline and Reform at County Hall wanted that to be accelerated.
The mayor, who would be directly elected by the public, would head up a combined authority with representatives from councils.
They would have responsibility for 'big ticket' items such as transport, infrastructure, strategic planning and economic development.
Robin Hunter-Clarke, deputy leader of Norfolk County Council (Image: Robin Hunter-Clarke)
Robin Hunter-Clarke, deputy leader of Norfolk County Council, said he believed there was "every chance" the election could be brought forward.
David Bick, Mr Hunter-Clarke's leader at County Hall, is the Reform candidate for the mayoral post.
Other candidates include Carli Harper (Labour) and Tim Passmore (Conservative).
However, the Liberal Democrats and the Greens are looking for new candidates after the people they had picked - Kevin Keable and Caroline Topping - withdrew from the race.
While Norfolk leaders are keen to bring the election forward, their counterparts over the border in Suffolk are not supporting the call.
The two councils have been developing a new deal to submit to the government over the mayoral proposals, with Suffolk County Council leader Michael Hadwen keen that, if the elected mayor is from Norfolk, their deputy is from Suffolk.
The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government has confirmed it is reviewing a number of requests to bring the mayoral elections forward.
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