Oxfordshire County Council election: Conservative leader loss
03/05/2025
Finger pointed at Reform voting as one reason for the result
by Esme Kenney, Local Democracy Reporter
The leader of the Conservative group on Oxfordshire County Council has lost his seat in the local elections, with the party suffering significant losses in the county.
Conservative candidate Eddie Reeves lost out in the Cropredy and Hook Norton division to Liberal Democrat candidate Chris Brant by 53 votes.
It was one of the most high profile losses for a councillor awaiting the outcome of the count held in Abingdon on Friday.
Mr Reeves has represented Banbury Calthorpe since 2017 and has been leader of the party since 2021.
The Conservative group will now have 10 seats on the county council, having had 19 before the election.
Meanwhile the Lib Dems won their first majority ever on Oxfordshire County Council after winning 36 divisions.
Reform UK received a swathe of votes, coming second in many divisions, but only one councillor was elected in Didcot South.
After losing his seat, Mr Reeves said: “I lost my seats by 53 votes. The Reform vote in my patch was over 700.
“I felt that we did everything that we possibly could to make a positive case for voting Conservative.
“However, it wasn’t enough.
“When you ally the Reform phenomenon to tactical voting, and their electorate is increasingly sophisticated here in Oxfordshire, it was always going to be an uphill battle.
“For my part, I don’t feel that I could have done any more.”
In relation to Liberal Democrat policies in the county he later added: “As someone who has opposed their policies over the last four years, I would like to see the public reaction to their policies when they come to pass.
“Many of their most controversial policies such as the traffic filters have not yet been rolled out.
“What the public reaction to those controversial measures are when they come to pass remains to be seen.”
Mr Reeves sits on Cherwell District Council for the Deddington ward.
The Conservatives who kept their seats include Nick Field-Johnson, (Burford and Carterton West) Ian Snowdon (Didcot West) and Liam Walker (Hanborough and Hailey).
David Bartholmew, who represented Sonning Common, and Nick Leverton, who represented Carterton South & West, also lost their seats.
Former Conservative leader of the county council Ian Hudspeth met the same fate as Mr Reeves in 2021, losing his Woodstock seat to the leader of West Oxfordshire District Council Andy Graham.
He stood for the division again in this election but lost to Mr Graham a second time.
The breakdown of the results was as follows: Liberal Democrats (36), Labour (12), Conservatives (10), Green (seven), Reform UK (one), Independent Oxford Alliance (one), Independent (one), Henley Residents Group (one).
Published: by the Banbury FM News Team
