Dominic Raab, Chief of Staff to Dominic Grieve MP, was today selected as the Conservative candidate for Esher and Walton.
He gave up a career at the Foreign Office three years ago to work full-time for the party and has become a champion for civil liberties, authoring The Assault on Liberty – What Went Wrong With Rights.
Read his Platform pieces for ConservativeHome.
He inherits Ian Taylor MP's projected majority of more than 7,000 over the Liberal Democrats.
Congratulations to Dominic and commiserations to the unsuccessful candidates.
Tim Montgomerie
8pm: Commenting on his selection Dominic Raab said:
"It is a tremendous honour to have been selected to represent the Conservative party in Esher and Walton. I would like to pay tribute to the other candidates, the Association's highly efficient management of the primary process and Ian Taylor's outstanding record of public service here. I will be working hard to represent every community across the constituency in the weeks and months ahead."
ConHome has learnt that Sajid Javid came second.
James Forsyth predicts that he Raab will be a star member of the Class of 2010 and tips him for rapid promotion to ministerial rank.
10pm: Statement from Ian Taylor MP:
"There were over 500 attendees for most of the meeting with participation by Conservative members and those from other political and community allegiances. It was well organised. All six candidates had been out and about actively over recent weeks and showed strengths. I wish the unsuccessful ones well elsewhere as this was tremendous experience. Dominic Raab came through convincingly because he demonstrated greater skill in answering the questions, was ready to push back on some of the moderator's deliberate probes and set out with clarity his convictions. He also showed a warmth of character which matters a lot in contests such as these. I am looking forward to working with him over the next few months as a team. I know he intends to serve all the communities within the Esher and Walton constituency and hope to represent them at Westminster after the General Election."
