At a special Meeting held on Thursday, June 5 2025, Maldon Town Council co-opted two new councillors to fill one vacancy in North Ward and one vacancy in West Ward within the Town of Maldon.

The Town Council are pleased to welcome the following councillors to the Town Council:

• Cllr Richard Howard-Smith – West Ward

• Cllr Neil Kelly – North Ward

Maldon Town Mayor, Cllr John Driver, said: "The Council extends its sincere thanks to all the candidates who put themselves forward for consideration.

"They all demonstrated a strong commitment and passion for the future of Maldon. The choice was difficult, but I believe we now have two excellent new councillors."

Each of the candidates were interviewed and the Town Councillors then voted for their preferred candidate with the person receiving the fewest votes being removed from the ballot.

This process continued until there was a majority vote reached for the two candidates.

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Richard Howard-Smith commented: "I'm truly honoured to be elected as Councillor for Maldon West.

"This community means so much to me, and I'm excited to get started— listening to residents, tackling local issues, and working together to make Maldon an even better place to live, for all of us."

Neil Kelly commented: "I'm truly humbled to be elected as Councillor for Maldon North. I care deeply about our town and I'm looking forward to working closely with residents; listening, supporting, and helping shape a community we can all be proud of.

"Your voices will always be at the heart of my work."

Following the voting by councillors, Richard Howard-Smith and Neil Kelly were invited to make their Declaration of Acceptance of Office at the meeting and serve as councillors with immediate effect.

Both Councillors will hold the positions until 2027 which is when the next full Town Council election will take place.