Liberal Democrats win Chesham and Amersham by-election
The Liberal Democrats have won the Chesham and Amersham by-election, held after the death of incumbent MP Dame Cheryl Gillan. The seat had been Conservative since its creation in 1974 and the Party were expected to hold it, albeit with a reduced majority. Since 1974, the Tory majority had never been less than 10,000.
Unlike Dame Cheryl, the Conservative candidate Peter Fleet did not oppose HS2 and Green was the only mainstream candidate to do so. She also tapped into residents’ concerns regarding changes to planning laws, making it harder for residents to object to planning proposals and the impact this could have on Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Much attention has been paid to the Conservatives taking bricks out of Labour’s red wall in Northern England, and it will be interesting to see the results from the upcoming Batley & Spen by-election in a little under two weeks’ time. However, the Liberal Democrats convincingly winning this traditional Tory seat could be part of a wider realignment of the electorate, their persuasions for voting and who they vote for. This pro-Remain seat is the type that the Liberal Democrats needed to win to re-establish themselves as key players in Westminster, but only time will tell if this is a freak result based on local factors or indicative of wider electoral changes within the UK.
Full Results:
Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat): 21,517
Peter Fleet (Conservative): 13,489
Carolyne Culver (Green): 1,480
Natasa Pantelic (Labour): 622
Alex Wilson (Reform UK): 414
Others: 432
Biography of Sarah Green MP:
Sarah Green MP studied international relations at Aberystwyth University, spent two years working as a Parliamentary Researcher before creating her own coaching and communications business, Green and Ginger. She joined the Liberal Democrats over the Iraq War. She was part of a student Amnesty International group and was the Chair of the Welsh Young Liberal Democrats. She has stood in two General Elections, contesting Ynys Môn in 2005 and Arfon in 2010.
Charlie Souster Senior Account Executive
Benedict Croft Account Executive
