In the last of our series detailing what happened to the original 100 members of the party's so-called priority list of candidates, below we list the 26 who are still seeking a parliamentary seat for the next election.
(On Monday we listed the 27 who are no longer seeking a Westminster seat, on Tueday we listed the 18 who have been selected to stand in Conservative held seats and yesterday we detailed the 27 who will be standing in target seats.)
Carolyn Abbott Candidate in Sheffield Heeley in 2001 and Barnsley East & Mexborough in 2005 (as well as the 2004 European Elections), Carolyn had a baby earlier in the Parliament when most of the seats were selecting candidates. She is now chairman of the North Derbyshire Conservatives (covering the Bolsover, Chesterfield and North East Derbyshire constituencies) and is keen to stand in a seat in Yorkshire or the East Midlands.
Tariq Ahmad He contested Croydon North in 2005 and was made party vice-chairman responsible for cities in 2008. A Merton councillor since 2002, he is currently the Cabinet Member responsible for Community Safety and Engagement.
Amar Ahmed A GP who is a partner in a health centre in Cheshire which is pioneering practice-based commissioning, Amar has also advised the party on health policy. He was the party's candidate in Manchester Blackley in 2005 and would like to stand in a seat in the North West at the next election.
Clive Allen Candidate in Devon North in 2001 and Somerton & Frome in 2005, he is working in the City and is a member of the party's Patrons' Board.
James Bethell Stood in Tooting in 2005 and has applied for a few seats so far this Parliament. James is now director of PoliticsHome.com.
Fiona Bruce A former Small Businesswoman of the Year, Fiona stood in Warrington South in 2005 after being selected at one of the earliest open primaries. She is on the Cheshire and The Wiral Area Board, but with two children is limiting her applications to seats in the North West.
Sharon Buckle A candidate for the European Parliament in the East Midlands in 1999 and 2004 and contested Liverpool Walton at the 2005 general election. Workinfg as a pharmacist in cahrge of a multi-million pound business, she is still seeking a seat "within a reasonable distance" of her home.
Caroline Dinenage After standing for Portsmouth South in 2005, Caroline has not applied for many seats during this Parliament (although she did reach one final) on account of building up her business and raising a young family. She is still seeking a suitable seat in which to stand.
Suella Fernandes The candidate for Leicester East in 2005, Suella has applied for a number of seats and is still seeking a seat. She is a barrister who is currently supporting a variety of other candidates and campaigning in her home territory of Islington.
Howard Flight The former frontbencher and MP for Arundel & South Downs between 1997 and 2005, he was barred from standing again at the 2005 general election by Michael Howard after he overstepped the party line on spending cuts. Howard recently set up Flight and Prtners Recovery Fund and has become a regular contributor of Platform pieces on ConservativeHome.
Ashley Gray The candidate for South East Cornwall in 2001 and 2005, he applied for many seats and reached a number of semi-finals and finals. He has now moved to Somerset where he is a former county councillor.
Laetitia Gunn Having stood in Salford in 2005 - and served as a local councillor in Shropshire - Laetitia completes the final phase of her qualifying as a barrister in five weeks' time and is then intending to focus on getting selected.
Sam Gyimah The CBI's Entrepreneur of the Future in 2005, Sam was chairman of the Bow Group in 2007 and reached several finals in attractive seats. He runs a website which helps self-employed people find work and is still hunting for a seat.
Hannah Hall After standing in Luton North in 2005, Hannah applied for a few seats early in the Parliament, but took time out for her young family and as a senior manager in the police is restructed in what political activity she can undertake. However, she is still seeking a seat which would be compatible with her family circumstances.
Kim Humphreys Having contested Camberwell & Peckham in 1997 and Dulwich & West Norwood in 2005, Kim is still seeking a seat for the next election, and has thus far applied for twenty or so seats. Since 2007 he has been full-time leader of the Conservative Group on Southwark Council, Deputy Leader of the Council and Executive Member for Housing.
Fiona Kemp Having contested Truro & St Austell in 2005, Fiona, a GP in Cornwall, has applied for a number of seats and narrowly missed out in a number of finals.
Phillip Lee A GP based in the Thames Valley, Phillip stood as candidate in Blaenau Gwent at the 2005 general election. He applied for a number of seats and had a handful of interviews and remains active in two associations.
Katy Lindsay Businesswoman Katy stood against John Prescott in Hull East in 2005 and is still heavily involved in the party at grassroots level as vice-chairman of Tooting Conservaitves, chairman of her local branch and is chairman of the governors of a local comprehenisve school. She also worked on the party's Globalisation and Global Poverty report and has helped draft the forthcoming Green paper on internatonal development. She has been interviewed in a number of safe seats, reaching the last four in two. She is managing director of her own business.
Alan Lockwood After standing against Tony Blair in Sedgefield in 2005, Alan put in for a number of seats early on - reaching several open primaries - and has since been concentrating on applying for seats in his region. He is chairman of the Louth and Horncastle Conservatoive Association and vice-chairman of Lincolnshire Conservatives. He was one of the most decoarted fighter pilots in the RAF, and reached the rank of Group Captain, serving most recently in the first Gulf War, Bosnia
and Afghanistan as a pilot and commander.
Dorothy Luckhurst The candidate in Ayrshire North & Arran in 2001 and Blaydon in 2005, she has confirmed that she is still looking for a seat.
Julia Manning After standing in Bristol East in 2005, Julia - a regular contributor to the CentreRight blog - has applied for about a dozen seats and reached three finals. She has remained politically active as deputy chairman of her local association and work-wise has launched 2020health, an independent centre-right think-tank.
Cordelia McCartney Having fought Lewisham Deptford in 2001, Cordelia applied for a number of seats, but is now concertrating her efforts on seeking a seat local to her in the East Midlands or with which she has strong links. She is Women’s Area Chairman in Lincolnshire and her husband, Karl, is standing in Lincoln. Work-wise, she has set up up a business in garden design.
Julie Moody Was selected for Middlesbrough South and Cleveland East in March 2007, but later stood down for personal and business reasons. Once they were resolved at the end of 2008, she started seeking a seat again and is now the Yorskhire representative on the Candidates' Network Advisory Group. She recently wrote this article for ConservativeHome.
Pamela Singleton The candidate in Pontefract & Castleford in 2001 and then Pudsey in 2005, Pamela is still keenly looking for a seat, remianing active in her local association in Harrogate & Knaresborough.
Jason Steen Having stood in Liverpool Wavertree in 2005, Jason has been interviewed in almost half of the twenty or so seats to which he has so far applied. He remains active in the party in London and South Devon and runs an advisory business focused on the aerospace and defence sectors.
Elizabeth Truss Candidate for Hemsworth in 2001 and then Calder Valley in 2005, Elizabeth is now deputy director of the Refom think-tank and a regular contributor of Platform articles to ConservativeHome.
Simon Walker Formerly a senior executive at Reuters and a member of John Major's Downing Street Policy Unit, Simon was interviewd in half of the dozen or so seats to which he has so far applied. He is currently Chief Executive of the British Venture Capital Association.
Jonathan Isaby
PS: I have been unable to establish the intentions of just one of the one hundred original A-Listers - Dr Richard Evans. If he is reading or if any readers are able to help, please email me.
