Background
The son of Sir Peter Eustace Thornton, Thornton grew up in Farnham in Surrey and was educated at Charterhouse School, before reading law at Manchester Polytechnic.
The son of Sir Peter Eustace Thornton, Thornton grew up in Farnham in Surrey and was educated at Charterhouse School, before reading law at Manchester Polytechnic.
He was elected in the Eastleigh by-election held on 28 February 2013, a seat that he subsequently lost in the 2015 general election. He has had a range of jobs, including spells in the United States (his mother is from Tennessee). Mike also spent a significant period of time working in financial services.
He has lived in Bishopstoke, Hampshire since 1994 and was previously a parish councillor in Bishopstoke and a borough councillor in Eastleigh.
Following the resignation of the previous Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament Chris Huhne, he was chosen as their candidate at the 2013 Eastleigh by-election to replace him. In Parliament, Thornton joined the European Scrutiny Committee, the Work and Pensions Committee and the Bill committee for HS2, which he argues "would benefit the country as a whole, not just the cities that link to it".
55th United Kingdom Parliament.
