A SECOND Liberal Democrat county councillor has resigned her seat, less than a fortnight after another said she was stepping down.

Kirsten Johnson was selected to fight the North Devon parliamentary seat for the Lib Dems back in June and said she would stay in Oxfordshire for the 'time being'.

But a county council spokesman said Dr Johnson, a musician, officially resigned her seat yesterday.

She had been elected to represent the Wheatley division in May 2017 and is a regular contributor to the Liberal Democrat Voice website.

It means there will be a third by-election to elect county councillors before the end of the year – but a date will only be confirmed for Dr Johnson's seat over the next couple of weeks.

The first, in Iffley Fields and St Mary's division, will be held on October 18.

That will be held to elect a replacement for former Labour councillor Helen Evans, who was also elected in May 2017 but resigned her seat in August.

The second will be held to elect a replacement for Zoe Patrick, the former council chairman for 2017/18, who resigned on September 27. A by-election in her former Grove and Wantage division will be held on November 15.

In Iffley Fields and St Mary's, Damian Haywood will stand for Labour; Josie Procter will stand for the Lib Dems; Paul Sims for the Conservatives and David Williams for the Green Party.

So far, the Lib Dems have said Jane Hanna will stand in Grove and Wantage; Ben Mabbett will stand for the Conservatives.