Joshua Reynolds (politician)

Joshua Peter Reynolds[1] (born 1998 or 1999[2]) is a British politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Maidenhead since being elected in 2024. A member of the Liberal Democrats, he took the seat from the Conservative Party after the former prime minister Theresa May stood down for the 2024 parliamentary election.[3]

Joshua Reynolds
Member of Parliament
for Maidenhead
Assumed office
4 July 2024 (2024-07-04)
Preceded byTheresa May
Majority2,963 (5.9%)
Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Councillor for Furze Platt Ward
Assumed office
3 May 2019
Personal details
Born
Joshua Peter Reynolds

1998 or 1999 (age 25–26)
Political partyLiberal Democrats

Early life and career

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Born and brought up in Maidenhead, he was educated at Furze Platt Senior School, before gaining a honours degree from Cardiff Metropolitan University in Business & Management Studies. Before becoming an MP, Reynolds was a manager for a chain of supermarkets.[4]

Political career

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In 2019 he was elected as a Councillor for Furze Platt in Windsor & Maidenhead.[5] In 2023 he was re-elected and became Cabinet Member for Communities & Leisure on Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead council.[6]

Reynolds was the Liberal Democrat candidate for the Maidenhead constituency in the 2019 General Election, where he came second behind Theresa May.[7] Reynolds won 24.4% of the vote, an increase of 13.2% from the 2017 General Election.[8]

Parliamentary career

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Reynolds was elected as the first Liberal Democrat MP for Maidenhead in the 2024 general election, winning it from the Conservative party, who had held the seat since 1997. He is the first liberal MP to be elected to represent this constituency in over 100 years[9] with a majority of 2,963, overturning a Conservative majority of 18,846.[10]

References

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  1. ^ McBride, Nicole (5 July 2024). "General Election results for Maidenhead". Slough Observer. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  2. ^ Nair, Anaka (5 July 2024). "General Election: Liberal Democrats win Maidenhead seat to end 27-year Tory hold". Maidenhead Advertiser. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  3. ^ "Maidenhead | General Election 2024". Sky News. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  4. ^ "Campaigning for Maidenhead". Retrieved 2024-07-06.
  5. ^ "Furze Platt | Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead". www.rbwm.gov.uk. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
  6. ^ "New leader and Cabinet for the Royal Borough appointed | Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead". www.rbwm.gov.uk. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
  7. ^ "General election results 2019 | Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead". www.rbwm.gov.uk. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
  8. ^ "General election results 2017 | Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead". www.rbwm.gov.uk. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
  9. ^ "Liberal Democrats win election in Maidenhead after years of Conservative rule". Slough Observer. 2024-07-05. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
  10. ^ "Theresa May's former seat goes Lib Dem in Tory wipe-out". BBC News. 2024-07-05. Retrieved 2024-07-06.