Local elections 2023: Leader ousted by 22-year-old as Tories lose council
A 22-year-old Liberal Democrat candidate has caused a huge upset as he defeated the Conservative leader of the council in Windsor and Maidenhead.
George Blundell ousted Andrew Johnson who saw his Tory party lose overall control of the local authority.
Mr Blundell said: "It's going to be a different life but a life I've chosen and my passion has always been politics - I can't wait to get started."
The Lib Dems took control of the council with 22 of the 41 seats.
Celebrating his victory, Mr Blundell told BBC News: "[It's] quite the scalp - obviously being 22 and defeating the Tory leader is quite a feat.
"I don't want to boast obviously, I'm really proud what we have done as a team and I'm beyond excited to see what we can do in the council.
"I'm 22 but at the same time I don't think it really matters... I feel like I'm ready. It is my wildest dream and it's been realised. I'm over the moon.
"Being a councillor is such a responsibility and having that on your shoulders does obviously change your life."
Speaking later, Mr Blundell, who works for an education firm, said: "I got in at about 6:30am and had about an hour's sleep and now I'm back at the day job."
He said he planned to celebrate with his family later at "the local pub, where I used to work as a pot washer".
Who is George Blundell?
- Born 16 June 2000, he is a triplet and has a sister and a brother. He grew up in Littlewick Green, near Maidenhead
- He studied politics and international relations at De Montfort University Leicester and graduated in May 2021
- He lives at home with his mum, Revd Tina Molyneux, siblings and 12-year-old red fox Labrador, Bella
- He works at an education company and is also an ambassador for charity the Livingstone Tanzania Trust
- Hobbies include travelling - he's hiked up Mount Kilimanjaro - and being a massive Liverpool fan
Former leader Mr Johnson said: "It's clearly been a very difficult night for the Conservatives here. We will be back, we will learn the lessons.
"A lot of this was national issues. It's essentially a mid-term referendum on the government and I'm confident the government will learn the lessons and indeed go on into the general election on a positive footing."
Following the victory, the Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey paid a visit to Windsor.
"Time's up for Rishi Sunak," he said. "I'm so proud that when Katy Perry and Lionel Ritchie enter Windsor Castle for the coronation concert on Sunday, they'll be going into a ward that's represented by three brand new Liberal Democrat councillors."
Speaking during the walkabout, he continued: "The people have sent a huge message. A message so loud that even someone as out of touch as Rishi Sunak can't ignore.
"We're fed up of waiting so long for the basics. Waiting for hours for an ambulance. Days for a GP appointment. Months or even years for a hospital appointment. Waiting in vain for the police to turn up when there's been a break-in."
Responding to the overnight results, Mr Sunak said it was disappointing to lose Conservative councillors but added that his party was making progress in "key election battlegrounds" like Peterborough, Sandwell and Bassetlaw.
The count at Maidenhead leisure centre from 22:00 BST on Thursday was as quiet as could be for six hours.
But, just as the clock hit 04:00, there were huge cheers from the men and women in yellow as Mr Blundell knocked the leader off his perch.
It was a huge personal blow for the Tory leader. The party would never have been expecting to lose their figurehead, and certainly not to a 22-year-old taking his first steps in politics.
After 16 years of Tory rule, this is a pretty seismic change for the royal borough.
The Lib Dems are promising a new gentler tone of politics and to genuinely listen to what people want.
They admit they will be unlikely to overturn a hugely controversial Conservative plan to turn Maidenhead golf course into a 1,500-plus home housing development, but they will try to limit its environmental impact.
It will also fall to them the task of finishing a huge regeneration scheme in Maidenhead - people are fed up how long it is taking to complete.
But saying we hear and feel your pain is one thing, making it go away is quite another so the Lib Dems will have to convince voters their deeds can match their words.
Elsewhere in Berkshire, Labour kept control of Reading council.
Only one seat changed hands, with Labour beating the Conservatives into second place in Caversham Heights.
Sixty-four out of 230 councils are counting overnight meaning the majority of results will not be confirmed until later on Friday.
It was the first election in England to require photo ID.
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