Counsellors of state can take on the Monarch’s responsibility as head of state in their absence.
This means that William, Prince Harry, Prince Andrew and Princess Beatrice currently hold the positions.
Yet, the King is facing calls to change this by removing non-working royals from having such responsibility and being able to choose freely.
In response, Express.co.uk ran a poll from 1pm on Friday, September 23, to 4pm on Sunday, September 25, asking readers: “Who should be King Charles III’s counsellors of state?”
Who do YOU want as King Charles III’s counsellors of state? (Image: Getty)
Overall, 47,917 votes were cast by readers who could select up to four candidates to be counsellors of state.
Anne came out on top as the most favourable choice, receiving 27 percent (12,769 people) of the votes cast.
Current counsellor of state William was the second most popular among readers, receiving the backing of 26 percent (12,380 people) of readers to continue in his position.
Edward was also chosen to be a counsellor of state, finishing in third with 24 percent (11,414 people) of the vote.
New to the role, Beatrice received the support two percent (981 people) of readers.
Meanwhile, Harry and Andrew were not favoured to keep their positions with just one percent (426 people) and less than one percent with (203 people) voting for them respectively.
A further two percent (770 people) answered “other” indicating that they would like a different royal to have the position.
Many readers argue Prince Harry should lose his counsellor role as a non-working royal (Image: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty)
Prince Andrew and Princess Beatrice were not favoured among readers (Image: Getty)
Readers shared their reasoning for their selections in the dozens of comments left below the accompanying article.
There was plenty of support for Anne and Edward stepping up to assist their older brother in his role as King, as well as the Princess of Wales being given the position.
Username Mack20 said: “Counsellors of State should be long-standing working Royals who live in the UK. Clearly, Anne and Edward would be my top picks.”
Another, username Phillippa, said: “Princess Anne. No ifs no buts.”
Prince Harry ‘lost only ally’ in Royal Family – ‘There’s a lot of distrust’
The Duke of Sussex has shared a strained relationship with many of his royal relatives since his step back from royal duties in 2020, and the death of the Queen is expected to further complicate his position in the Royal Family.
And username Mad Hatter * said: “My personal opinion is as King Charles III’s stand-ins and lead role royals should be Princess Anne, Prince William and Princess Kate as very first ports of call along with Prince Edward and his wife.”
Readers also agreed that non-working royals – Andrew, Harry and Beatrice – should not be given such privileges.
Username chris137 said: “Well both Andrew and Harry should be removed as counsellors.”
And username lin27 wrote: “Keep the Yorks and Sussex away from the counsellor positions.”
While username swhite said: “Those who are not working should not be entitled to give opinions or make decisions. Non-working royals should not be Counsellors of State in today’s age.”
Queen Elizabeth II’s counsellors of state were Prince Philip until his death in 2021, Charles, William, Harry and Andrew.
Counsellors of state can attend Privy Council meetings and sign routine documents but only the monarch can carry out “core constitutional functions”.
It is rare for counsellors to be needed but Charles and William stepped in for the Queen earlier this year at the state opening of Parliament.
Source: EXPRESS CO UK
