Witham is a

parliamentary constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

represented by Dame Priti Patel in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

of the

UK Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of ...

since its 2010 creation. She is a

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

who was

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, more commonly known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom and the head of the Home Office. The position is a Great Office of State, maki ...

from 24 July 2019 until her resignation on 5 September 2022 following the announcement of the results of the Conservative Party leadership contest.

Constituency profile

Witham is one of the safest Conservative seats in the country. The town of Witham within it is the only area of real Labour strength in the region, being represented by one District Councillor alongside seven Conservative Councillors. Witham itself is an industrial town, on the Great Eastern main line railway from London to Norwich, with some heavy industry and London commuter belt residential areas – the strength of the Labour vote here was just enough to turn the former Braintree seat red in 1997, and in 2001, on the previous boundaries. However, the town is small, and the Witham seat extends to cover a huge part of rural central Essex, with affluent commuter villages and farming communities that show high levels of Conservative support.

History

The seat was created for the 2010 general election following a review of the Parliamentary representation of

by the

Boundary Commission for England In the United Kingdom, the boundary commissions are non-departmental public bodies responsible for determining the boundaries of parliamentary constituencies for elections to the House of Commons. There are four boundary commissions: one each f ...

which resulted in radical alterations to existing constituencies to allow for an extra seat to be created due to increased population. As a consequence, the new seat of Witham was created which included parts of the constituencies of Braintree,

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in northeastern Essex, England. It is the second-largest settlement in the county, with a population of 130,245 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census. The demonym is ''Colcestrian''. Colchester occupies the ...

, North Essex, and Maldon and East Chelmsford.

Boundaries

2010–2024

*The District of Braintree wards of Black Notley and Terling, Bradwell, Silver End and Rivenhall, Coggeshall and North Feering, Hatfield Peverel, Kelvedon, Witham Chipping Hill and Central,

Witham Witham () is a town and civil parish in the Braintree district, in the county of Essex, England. In the 2011 census, it had a population of 25,353. It is twinned with the town of Waldbröl, Germany. Witham stands on the Roman road between the ...

North, Witham South, and Witham West *The District of Maldon wards of Great Totham,

Tollesbury Tollesbury is a village in England, located on the Essex coast at the mouth of the River Blackwater, Essex, River Blackwater. It is situated nine miles east of the historic port of Maldon, Essex, Maldon and twelve miles south of Colchester, Engl ...

Tolleshunt D'Arcy Tolleshunt D'Arcy () is a village situated on the River Blackwater, Essex, Blackwater estuary in the Maldon (district), Maldon District of Essex, England. The village is southwest of Colchester, east of Chelmsford and north of Southend-on-Sea ...

, and Wickham Bishops and Woodham *The

Borough of Colchester The City of Colchester is a local government district with city status in Essex, England, named after its main settlement, Colchester. It is, with 194,394 people according to Office of National Statistics estimate for mid 2022, the most populou ...

wards of Birch and Winstree, Copford and West Stanway, Marks Tey, Stanway and

Tiptree Tiptree is a large village and civil parish in the English county of Essex, situated south-west of Colchester and around north-east of London. Surrounding villages include Messing, Tolleshunt Knights, Tolleshunt Major, Layer Marney, Inwor ...

The District of Braintree wards, which comprised approximately half the electorate, were transferred from the Braintree constituency; the District of Maldon wards from the abolished constituency of

Maldon and Chelmsford East Maldon and East Chelmsford was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. From 1997 to 2010 it elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. ...

; and the Borough of Colchester wards from the abolished constituency of North Essex, except for Stanway ward which had been in the

constituency.

Current

Further to the

2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies The 2023 review of Westminster constituencies was the most recent cycle of the process to redraw the Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, constituency map for the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. The new constituency b ...

, which came into effect for the

2024 general election This is a list of elections that were held in 2024. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. * 2024 United Nations Security Council election * 2024 national electoral calendar * 2024 local electo ...

, the composition of the constituency is as follows (as they existed on 1 December 2020): * The District of Braintree wards of: Coggeshall; Hatfield Peverel & Terling; Kelvedon & Feering; Silver End & Cressing; The Colnes; Witham Central; Witham North; Witham South; Witham West. * The City of Colchester wards of: Marks Tey & Layer; Stanway; Tiptree. * The District of Maldon wards of: Great Totham; Tollesbury; Tolleshunt D’arcy; Wickham Bishops and Woodham. ''Minor net gain from Braintree, primarily due to ward boundary changes.''

Members of Parliament

'' Braintree, Maldon & Chelmsford East and North Essex prior to 2010''

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

Elections in the 2010s

References

External links

Witham UK Parliament constituency
(boundaries April 2010 – May 2024) at ''MapIt UK''

(boundaries from June 2024) at ''MapIt UK'' {{Coord, 51.80, 0.65, type:adm2nd_dim:30000_region:GB-ESS, display=title Parliamentary constituencies in Essex Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 2010 Politics of Colchester Politics of Maldon District