The Leicester veteran, who celebrated his 40th birthday this week, whisked his West Surrey Racing-run BMW 330e M Sport around the 1.2-mile Kentish amphitheatre to finish the session 0.108 seconds clear of surprise package Michael Crees.
Local racer Crees, who has returned to the BTCC this season for the first time since 2020 with Power Maxed Racing, sat atop the times in his venerable Vauxhall Astra until Jelley knocked him off the top spot inside the final minute of running.
