A BOROUGH councillor has been selected as the potential replacement for North East Hampshire MP James Arbuthnot.
Councillor Ranil Jayawardena, deputy leader of Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council, was selected by secret ballot as the prospective Conservative candidate for the constituency at the 2015 General Election.
The vote followed an American-style “open primary” event at Sherfield School, in Sherfield-on-Loddon, held on Sunday afternoon, where members of the public could ask questions of four candidates.
After the ballot, Cllr Jayawardena retweeted messages of congratulations on Twitter, including one from South East MEP Daniel Hannan.
Mr Arbuthnot announced in 2011 that he intended to step down from his constituency at the next election. The seat includes Bramley, Hook, Odiham, Sherfield-on-Loddon and Silchester.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here