Harrogate Lib Dems unveil candidate aiming to upset Tory MP Andrew Jones at next general election

Tom Gordon, who has a reputation for leading campaigns across Yorkshire on local transport and health services, has already received the backing of Lord Willis of Knaresborough, Harrogate’s last Lib Dem MP.

Lord Willis, who represented Harrogate and Knaresborough from 1997 until 2010 when Andrew Jones won the first of four election victories for the Conservative Party, said: “Tom would make a fantastic MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough.

"I have seen first-hand how passionate he is about delivering change for local people across the region and know he will be a strong voice standing up for the constituency," said the Lib Dem peer.

Tom Gordon, 28, works for a national carers charity and is leader of the Lib Dem group on Wakefield Council, having represented his home town of Knottingley since 2019.

The Harrogate Lib Dem candidate for the next general election says he intends to focus on getting residents in the local area a fair deal after what he claims is years of the Conservatives taking the area for granted.

As a former young carer himself, Mr Gordon says he is passionate about giving a pay rise to carers and giving them the support and recognition they deserve.

He is also determined to improve health services, tackle sewage and uncleanliness in the local environment and fight for infrastructure and investment for local services.

“I am truly honoured to have been selected as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Harrogate and Knaresborough,” said Mr Gordon.

"As Harrogate and Knaresborough’s next MP, I will fight tirelessly to give local people a strong voice, both here and in Westminster.

“This is a beautiful and iconic part of the country with a strong sense of community.

"We need an independent voice who will listen to concerns and stand up for local people.

“People tell me our area deserves a fair deal.

"I’ll be the candidate that champions our area, standing up for local health services, tackling sewage in our rivers and demanding action on the cost of living crisis."

Harrogate and Knaresborough Lib Dems believe the next general election will be a straight contest between the Lib Dems and the Conservatives.

The vote between the rival parties narrowed in the last election in December 2019 when Tory Andrew Jones MP’s vote tally of 29,962 was slightly down on the 31,477 votes he won in 2017.

For the Lib Dems, Judith Rogerson received 20,287 votes in 2019, a significant rise compared to the Lib Dems' total of 13, 309 in 2017, increasing their vote share by 12% and cutting Mr Jones’s majority to 9,675.

The Labour Party came third with 5,480 votes.

Local Lib Dems believe the tide is now turning their way, not only nationally after the political turmoil in at the top of the Tory Government over the last 12 months but also closer to home in the Harrogate district.

In last year’s county council elections, the Liberal Democrats won the popular vote in the Harrogate area and now hold the most seats across the constituency.

As a result, they see Harrogate and Knaresborough as an eminently winnable marginal seat.

To over-turn Mr Jones’s majority at the next general election which must take place by January 2025, Mr Gordon will need to achieve a swing of 8% from the Conservatives.

“Residents in our area deserve better than chaos and incompetence that we see in Westminster at the moment,” said Tom Gordon.

“At the next election here, it will be a choice between four more years of a Conservative government taking them for granted or a Liberal Democrat MP being your local champion."

It’s a point of view backed by the last Lib Dem to hold the seat during the days of the New Labour Government.

“Across the country, people are turning to the Liberal Democrats to oust out of touch Conservative MPs,” said Lord Willis.

"People are fed up with being taken for granted by the Conservative party and I’ve heard this loud and clear from people across Harrogate and Knaresborough.”

Mr Gordon announced at the end of last year that he would not be standing at May’s local council elections in Wakefield.