Samantha Kate Dixon is a British politician of the Labour Party who serves as

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MP) for the City of Chester, winning the seat in the 2022 City of Chester by-election. Between 2015 and 2019, Dixon was the leader of

Cheshire West and Chester Council Cheshire West and Chester Council is the local authority of Cheshire West and Chester. It is a unitary authority, having the powers of a non-metropolitan county and district council combined. It provides a full range of local government services ...

, the first woman to hold this position.

Early life

Dixon has lived in

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

since the age of four, in areas including

Hoole Hoole is a suburb in the east of Chester, in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The area is contiguous with Newton to the north and Vicars Cross to the south. The A41 road marks ...

and

Upton-by-Chester Upton-by-Chester is a civil parish and a large suburb on the outskirts of Chester, in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It includes the villages of Upton and Upton Heath. Hist ...

, and attended

Christleton High School Christleton High School is a large academy school located in the small village of Christleton on the outskirts of Chester. The Headteacher is Darran Jones. The School offers education from age 11 to 18 and has its own Sixth Form. Three current ...

. She has a BA (1987) in English literature (British and Commonwealth) from the

University of Sheffield , mottoeng = To discover the causes of things , established = – University of SheffieldPredecessor institutions: – Sheffield Medical School – Firth College – Sheffield Technical School – University College of Sheffield , type = Pu ...

, and worked for

Sotheby's Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, and ...

as a senior press officer from 1989 to 1997.

Political career

Council career

Dixon was first elected to Cheshire West and Chester Council in the 2011 council election, representing the Chester City and the Garden Quarter ward. In 2015, she became the first woman leader of the council. She was leader of her party group until the 2019 elections, when Labour lost overall control of the council. After resigning as council leader, Dixon remained a councillor for Chester City and The Garden Quarter ward.

Parliamentary career

On 30 October 2022, Dixon was announced as the Labour candidate for the City of Chester by-election. The by-election was triggered after the resignation of incumbent Labour MP Chris Matheson. One of her campaign pledges was to make the historic

Chester Rows Chester Rows are a set of structures in each of the four main streets of Chester, in the United Kingdom, consisting of a series of covered walkways on the first floor behind which are entrances to shops and other premises. At street level is ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

. The by-election itself saw nine candidates, with 28,541 votes in total and a turnout of 41.2% of the local electorate. Dixon won with 60.8% of the vote, 17,309 votes, and a majority of 10,974. After her victory she said she would "fight Chester's corner" in

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

. She was sworn into the House of Commons on 5 December, and was welcomed to Parliament on 7 December by

Keir Starmer Sir Keir Rodney Starmer (; born 2 September 1962) is a British politician and barrister who has served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party since 2020. He has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Holborn and St Pancras ...

and Labour MPs.

Personal life

Dixon is married and has three children. She enjoys

knitting Knitting is a method by which yarn is manipulated to create a textile, or fabric. It is used to create many types of garments. Knitting may be done by hand or by machine. Knitting creates stitches: loops of yarn in a row, either flat or i ...

and learned how to knit socks during the

COVID-19 lockdown Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of non-pharmaceutical interventions colloquially known as lockdowns (encompassing stay-at-home orders, curfews, quarantines, and similar societal restrictions) have been implemented in numerous countrie ...

Honours

Dixon was appointed a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(MBE) in the

2022 Birthday Honours The 2022 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as par ...

"for political service".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dixon, Samantha Living people 21st-century English women politicians Alumni of the University of Sheffield Councillors in Cheshire Female members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Christleton High School People from Cheshire West and Chester Sotheby's people UK MPs 2019–present Women councillors in England Year of birth missing (living people) Labour Party (UK) councillors