The campaign to give the people of Bath and north east Somerset the opportunity to decide if they want an elected mayor or not is building momentum.
There has been a huge response to the issue after it was highlighted in a front page story in last week's Bath Chronicle.
A debate has been sparked about the merits of an elected mayor, and the campaign group behind the proposed referendum has seen a surge in volunteers wanting to help out.
Stephen Taylor, who is part of the core team trying to get 7,000 petition signatures to prompt a vote on the matter, said: "We have had quite a lot of people approaching us and volunteering to help out with collecting the signatures.
"And we haven't seen any people saying that they think the idea of an elected mayor is a horrible idea."
Mr Taylor added that he believed the support for the campaign largely lay with the feeling that B&NES needed a political figure which represented the whole area, rather than just Bath or north east Somerset.
"They want a mayor who is elected by the whole of B&NES, rather than elected by the people of one single ward and then chosen by councillors (the current system of council leader)," he said. "I do hear from people in Bath who think north east Somerset gets too much attention, while people in north east Somerset think Bath gets too much attention."
Mr Taylor said it was also the case that it was good for democracy that people in the area had the opportunity for a referendum, so they could give their views on whether or not they wanted an elected mayor.
So far the petition has gathered around 1,000 signatures, but needs to multiply this by seven by the end of the year if it is going to be successful in automatically triggering a referendum. This would be held at the same time as next May's General Election and local elections.
The campaign group are planning a series of public events in the autumn, to highlight the debate and the petition, and volunteers have already been out at the farmers' market at Green Park Station to try to drum up support.
To find out more about the campaign, including how to sign the petition for the referendum, go to www.mayorforbanes.org.
