David Rendel - Political Career

Political Career

Rendel was a Newbury District Councillor from 1987 to 1995. He won the by-election in 1993 with a massive majority of 22,055. Unlike some other Conservative by-election losses during the same parliament, tactical voting by Labour voters can have played little role in the result, as the Labour candidate at the preceding 1992 general election had secured only 6% of the vote. The drop in the Labour vote accounted for only a small fraction of Rendel's margin of victory in the by-election.

He stood in the 1999 election for the leadership of the Liberal Democrats, but came fifth, losing to Charles Kennedy.

Rendel is a directly elected member of the Liberal Democrats Federal Executive committee.

During May 2006, Rendel was selected by local party members as the Liberal Democrat candidate for the Newbury seat for the next election. At the general election in May 2010 was defeated by the sitting Conservative MP, Richard Benyon, whose majority was 20.9%.

After the election, Rendel was the only member on the Liberal Democrats Federal Executive to vote against the recommendation that the party form a coalition government with the Conservative Party.