Karen Gillard was the Liberal Democrat Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for the reformed constituency of South East Cornwall in the United Kingdom for the 2010 general election.[1] Boundary changes introduced for the 2010 election excised a number of key Liberal Democrat wards from the constituency, notably St Blazey, which had supported the previous Liberal Democrat incumbent Colin Breed. The Conservative candidate Sheryll Murray won by 3220 votes.[2]
She was born in Exeter, grew up in Torpoint, attending Torpoint Comprehensive School and Devonport High School for Girls. She has an LL.B from Plymouth University, she undertook postgraduate studies at Guildford College of Law, and her Bar Vocation Course at Inns of Court School of Law, and she was called to the Bar in 2004.
Karen Gillard was elected as a Conservative City Councillor in Plymouth in 2000 for the Drake ward. Openly gay, she was chair of the Tory Campaign for Homosexual Equality (TORCHE) in 2001.[3]
In 2001 she left the City of Plymouth Conservative Council Group and joined the Liberal Democrats. She was elected as a Liberal Democrat Councillor in 2003.[3] In 2005, Gillard stood as the Liberal Democrat candidate for the constituency of Plymouth Sutton. She obtained 22.7% of the vote. In 2008, she was selected to stand as the Liberal Democrat[4] candidate for the constituency of South East Cornwall.[5] She obtained 38.6% of the vote.