David Frank Bellotti (13 August 1943 – 10 June 2015) was a British

Liberal Democrat Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democratic ideology. Active parties Former parties See also *Liberal democracy *Lib ...

politician who was

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 o ...

(MP) for the Eastbourne constituency from 1990 to 1992. He was the first Liberal Democrat politician to win a parliamentary election, following the formation of the party through the merger of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

and the SDP. He was also the most recent UK

to successfully take a seat from an opposing party following the assassination of the incumbent politician.

Early life

Bellotti attended

Exeter School Exeter School is an independent co-educational day school for pupils between the ages of 7 and 18 in Exeter, Devon, England. In 2019, there were around 200 pupils in the Junior School and 700 in the Senior School. History The School traces its ...

and then went on to complete diplomas in youth service and counselling. He studied part-time at the

University of Sussex , mottoeng = Be Still and Know , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £14.4 million (2020) , budget = £319.6 million (2019–20) , chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar , vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil , ...

, gaining a MA in education policy.

Political career

Bellotti first contested the

Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the l ...

seat at the 1979 general election, subsequently fighting

Lewes Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. It is the police and judicial centre for all of Sussex and is home to Sussex Police, East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, Lewes Crown Court and HMP Lewes. The civil parish is the centre of t ...

in the 1983 and 1987 general elections under the Liberal banner. He then won the parliamentary seat of Eastbourne for the Liberal Democrats in the 1990 by-election following the assassination of

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

Ian Gow Ian Reginald Edward Gow (; 11 February 1937 – 30 July 1990) was a British politician and solicitor. As a member of the Conservative Party, he served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Eastbourne from 1974 until his assassination by the P ...

by the

Provisional Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, facilitate Irish reu ...

(IRA). He became the first person to be elected as a Liberal Democrat MP after the party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the Liberal Party and the SDP. Bellotti's win was both unexpected and controversial, with Conservative MP

Ann Widdecombe Ann Noreen Widdecombe (born 4 October 1947) is a British politician, author and television personality. She was Member of Parliament (MP) for Maidstone and The Weald, and the former Maidstone constituency, from 1987 to 2010 and Member of the ...

noting: "Bellotti is the innocent beneficiary of murder. I suspect as last night as the Liberal Democrats were toasting their success, in its hideouts the IRA were doing the same thing". After Bellotti's win, future by-elections resulting from assassinations of MPs saw most parties decline to contest the seat. The shock defeat contributed to the end of

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

's premiership in November 1990 as Conservative MPs worried if they could hold their seats at a general election if she remained prime minister. Two years later Bellotti was defeated by

Nigel Waterson Nigel Christopher Waterson (born 12 October 1950) is a British former politician. He was the Conservative Member of Parliament for Eastbourne from 1992 until 2010. Waterson was a junior minister in the government of John Major. He has been the c ...

in the 1992 general election in which

John Major Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997, and as Member of Parliament (MP) for Huntingdon, formerly Hunting ...

's Conservative government was re-elected. He subsequently unsuccessfully contested the East Sussex and Kent South constituency in the 1994 elections to the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the Legislature, legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven Institutions of the European Union, institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and in ...

. Bellotti returned to local government, regaining a seat on

East Sussex County Council East Sussex County Council is the local authority for the non-metropolitan county of East Sussex. East Sussex is divided into five local government districts. Three are larger, rural, districts (from west to east: Lewes; Wealden; and Rother ...

and was elected chairman of Sussex

Police Authority A police authority in the United Kingdom is a public authority that is responsible for overseeing the operations of a police force. The nature and composition of police authorities has varied over time, and there are now just four dedicated "police ...

. He then became CEO of

Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club (), commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league ...

, a position in which he controversially took part in the sale of the indebted football club's stadium after their articles of association had been changed, allowing for profit to be made on the sale of the

Goldstone Ground The Goldstone Ground (or The Goldstone) was a football stadium in Hove, East Sussex that was the home ground of Brighton & Hove Albion between 1902 and 1997. History The Goldstone Ground stood on Old Shoreham Road, Hove, opposite Hove Park ...

. This change was however reversed on the insistence of the Football Association, preventing directors from taking out more than they had invested. Bellotti became reviled by Brighton fans and left the area shortly afterwards. After leaving the football club and losing his council seat Bellotti moved to

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Pl ...

and became election agent for Don Foster MP. In May 2003 David Bellotti was elected councillor for Lyncombe ward on

Bath and North East Somerset Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES) is a unitary authority district in England. Bath and North East Somerset Council was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the county of Avon. It is part of the ceremonial county of Somerset. ...

council and was re-elected in 2007 and 2011. He was appointed as chairman of the council for 2008/9 and was the council's cabinet member for resources for four years. He died on 10 June 2015, aged 71.

Personal life

Bellotti married three times. His first wife was Shelia Jones, whom he married in 1965, and they had a son and a daughter. He then married Jennifer Compson in 1973, with the couple having a son. His third wife was Jo Brown whom he married in 1996, and with whom he had a son and daughter.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bellotti, David Frank 1943 births 2015 deaths Liberal Democrats (UK) MPs for English constituencies English football chairmen and investors English people of Italian descent British politicians of Italian descent Councillors in South West England UK MPs 1987–1992 Politics of Eastbourne Members of East Sussex County Council Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. non-playing staff Liberal Democrats (UK) councillors 20th-century English businesspeople People educated at Exeter School Alumni of the University of Sussex