Faversham and Mid Kent is a constituency[n 1] represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. Since 2015, the seat has been held by Helen Whately of the Conservative Party.[n 2]
Faversham and Mid Kent | |
---|---|
County constituency for the House of Commons | |
County | Kent |
Electorate | 68,521 (December 2010)[1] |
Major settlements | Faversham and Shepway, Maidstone |
Current constituency | |
Created | 1997 |
Member of Parliament | Helen Whately (Conservative) |
Seats | One |
Created from | Faversham and Mid Kent |
Faversham and Mid Kent covers a mainly rural sweep around the North Downs, including part of Swale and Maidstone boroughs. Some of the traditional farming industry remains. Residents' health and wealth are around average for the UK.[2]
1997–2010: The Borough of Swale wards of Abbey, Boughton & Courtenay, Davington Priory, East Downs, St Ann's, Teynham and Lynsted, and Watling, and the Borough of Maidstone wards of Bearsted, Boxley, Detling, Harrietsham and Lenham, Headcorn, Hollingbourne, Langley, Leeds, Park Wood, Shepway East, Shepway West, Sutton Valence, and Thurnham.
2010–present: The Borough of Swale wards of Abbey, Boughton and Courtenay, Davington Priory, East Downs, St Ann's, and Watling, and the Borough of Maidstone wards of Bearsted, Boughton Monchelsea and Chart Sutton, Boxley, Detling and Thurnham, Downswood and Otham, Harrietsham and Lenham, Headcorn, Leeds, North Downs, Park Wood, Shepway North, Shepway South, and Sutton Valence and Langley.
The boundary change in 1997 caused minor confusion among a large minority of residents of the Maidstone electoral wards as a constituency named Maidstone and The Weald was also created at the same time (largely replacing the former Maidstone constituency), but residents in the Shepway and Park Wood areas of the town found themselves in Faversham and Mid Kent instead.[3]
Further to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, enacted by the Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023, from the next general election, due by January 2025, the constituency will be composed of the following (as they existed on 1 December 2020):
The Swale Borough wards of Teynham and Lynstead, and West Downs wards will be transferred from Sittingbourne and Sheppey, offset by the loss of the Maidstone Borough wards of Boughton Monchelsea & Chart Sutton, Headcorn, and Sutton Valence & Langley to the newly created constituency of Weald of Kent.
In 1997, the Faversham and Mid Kent constituency was formed when the previous Faversham seat was abolished and split into Sittingbourne and Sheppey and the town of Faversham which was then merged with Mid Kent to form this constituency.
Election | Member[5] | Party | |
---|---|---|---|
1997 | Andrew Rowe | Conservative | |
2001 | Sir Hugh Robertson | Conservative | |
2015 | Helen Whately | Conservative |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Reform UK | Maxwell Harrison[6] | ||||
Liberal Democrats | Hannah Perkin[7] | ||||
Green | Hannah Temple[8] | ||||
Conservative | Helen Whately[9] | ||||
Majority | |||||
Turnout |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Helen Whately | 31,864 | 63.2 | +2.1 | |
Labour | Jenny Reeves | 9,888 | 19.6 | -6.5 | |
Liberal Democrats | Hannah Perkin | 6,170 | 12.2 | +5.7 | |
Green | Hannah Temple | 2,103 | 4.2 | +1.3 | |
Independent | Gary Butler | 369 | 0.7 | New | |
Majority | 21,976 | 43.6 | +8.6 | ||
Turnout | 50,394 | 68.7 | -0.2 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +4.3 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Helen Whately | 30,390 | 61.1 | +6.7 | |
Labour | Michael Desmond | 12,977 | 26.1 | +9.9 | |
Liberal Democrats | David S. Naghi | 3,249 | 6.5 | -0.1 | |
UKIP | Mark McGiffin | 1,702 | 3.4 | -14.6 | |
Green | Alastair Gould | 1,431 | 2.9 | -1.0 | |
Majority | 17,413 | 35.0 | -1.4 | ||
Turnout | 49,749 | 68.9 | +3.0 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | -1.6 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Helen Whately[13] | 24,895 | 54.4 | −1.8 | |
UKIP | Peter Edwards-Daem | 8,243 | 18.0 | +14.3 | |
Labour | Michael Desmond | 7,403 | 16.2 | −0.4 | |
Liberal Democrats | David S. Naghi | 3,039 | 6.6 | −13.1 | |
Green | Tim Valentine | 1,768 | 3.9 | +2.0 | |
Monster Raving Loony | Hairy Knorm Davidson[14] | 297 | 0.6 | −0.2 | |
English Democrat | Gary Butler | 158 | 0.3 | New | |
Majority | 16,652 | 36.4 | −0.2 | ||
Turnout | 45,803 | 65.9 | −1.9 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | -8.1 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Hugh Robertson | 26,250 | 56.2 | +6.1 | |
Liberal Democrats | David S. Naghi | 9,162 | 19.6 | +2.9 | |
Labour | Ashok Rehal | 7,748 | 16.6 | −12.5 | |
UKIP | Sarah Larkins | 1,722 | 3.7 | +1.0 | |
Green | Tim Valentine | 890 | 1.9 | New | |
National Front | Graham Kemp[16] | 542 | 1.2 | New | |
Monster Raving Loony | Hairy Knorm Davidson | 398 | 0.9 | −0.6 | |
Majority | 17,088 | 36.6 | +16.6 | ||
Turnout | 46,712 | 67.8 | +2.6 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +1.6 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Hugh Robertson | 21,690 | 49.7 | +4.1 | |
Labour | Andrew W. Bradstock | 12,970 | 29.7 | −5.8 | |
Liberal Democrats | David S. Naghi | 7,204 | 16.5 | +3.0 | |
UKIP | Robert P. Thompson | 1,152 | 2.6 | +0.6 | |
Monster Raving Loony | Norman W. Davidson | 610 | 1.4 | New | |
Majority | 8,720 | 20.0 | +9.9 | ||
Turnout | 43,626 | 65.7 | +5.3 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +4.9 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Hugh Robertson | 18,739 | 45.6 | +1.2 | |
Labour | Grahame Birchall | 14,556 | 35.5 | −0.5 | |
Liberal Democrats | Michael Sole | 5,529 | 13.5 | +1.1 | |
UKIP | James Gascoyne | 828 | 2.0 | +1.1 | |
Green | Penelope Kemp | 799 | 1.9 | +1.2 | |
Rock 'n' Roll Loony | Norman W. Davidson | 600 | 1.5 | New | |
Majority | 4,183 | 10.1 | +1.7 | ||
Turnout | 41,051 | 60.4 | -13.1 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +0.9 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Andrew Rowe | 22,016 | 44.4 | ||
Labour | Alan Stewart | 17,843 | 36.0 | ||
Liberal Democrats | Bruce E. Parmenter | 6,138 | 12.4 | ||
Referendum | Robin M. Birley | 2,073 | 4.2 | ||
Monster Raving Loony | Norman W. Davidson | 511 | 1.0 | ||
UKIP | Michael J. Cunningham | 431 | 0.9 | ||
Green | David J. Currer | 380 | 0.8 | ||
Green Referendum Lawless Naturally Street Party | Caroline Morgan | 115 | 0.2 | ||
Natural Law | Nigel P.J. Pollard | 99 | 0.2 | ||
Majority | 4,173 | 8.4 | |||
Turnout | 49,606 | 73.5 | |||
Conservative win (new seat) |
51°15′N 0°48′E / 51.250°N 0.800°E