Sarah Hudson quits Kent County Council Conservative group to sit as independent

The Malling Rural East county councillor has left the KCC Conservative group and will sit without a party label at County Hall, though she is reported to be staying in the Conservative group at Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council.

Residents in Malling Rural East still have Sarah Hudson as their county councillor. That much hasn’t changed. But her departure from the KCC Conservative group shifts the balance at County Hall — and could cost the Conservatives committee seats and scrutiny roles, since group size determines how those positions are carved up.

Hudson was first elected to represent Malling Rural East in 2021 and was re-elected in 2025. She hasn’t resigned as a councillor. She’ll just be sitting without a party label from now on.

None of this will come as a complete surprise to anyone who’s followed her relationship with the KCC Conservative leadership. In October 2023 she challenged Roger Gough for the leadership of the group and lost, according to reports at the time by 44 votes to 17. By February 2024 she was publicly laying into the administration over its financial management and decision-making. Fractious doesn’t quite cover it.

No formal explanation has been offered for the split.

The Conservative group leadership has treated it as an internal matter and declined to say anything detailed publicly. The official KCC councillor listing confirms her elected status and offers nothing further. Which tells you roughly everything.

At Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council, Hudson is said to be staying put in the Conservative group.

The council’s next full meeting will be the first real test of whether the change hits Conservative representation on committees.

Source: @LeaderofKCC

Published: 10 September 2026