Marsha Chantal de Cordova (born 23 January 1976) is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for

Battersea Battersea is a large district in southwest London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and also extends along the south bank of the Thames Tideway. It includes the Battersea Park. Hist ...

since 2017. A member of the Labour Party, she was a Member of

Lambeth London Borough Council Lambeth London Borough Council, which styles itself Lambeth Council, is the local authority for the London Borough of Lambeth in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of the 32 in London. The council has been under Labour ...

from 2014 to 2018. Since 2024, De Cordova has served as Second Church Estates Commissioner. On the political left, she is a member of the Socialist Campaign Group. De Cordova served in the

Shadow Cabinet of Keir Starmer Keir Starmer assumed the position of Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom), Leader of the Opposition after 2020 Labour Party leadership election (UK), being elected as Leader of the Labour Party (UK), leader of the Labour Party on 4 April ...

as Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities from 2020 to 2021.

Early life and education

Marsha Chantal de Cordova was born on 23 January 1976 in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

, England. She has five siblings, one of whom is professional footballer Bobby Decordova-Reid. She was born with

nystagmus Nystagmus is a condition of involuntary (or voluntary, in some cases) Eye movement (sensory), eye movement. People can be born with it but more commonly acquire it in infancy or later in life. In many cases it may result in visual impairment, re ...

and is registered blind. De Cordova attended Hanham High School (now Hanham Woods Academy). De Cordova studied Law and European Policy Studies at

London South Bank University London South Bank University (LSBU) is a public university in Elephant and Castle, London. It is based in the London Borough of Southwark, near the South Bank of the River Thames, from which it takes its name. Founded in 1892 as the Borough Po ...

. After graduating she worked at a number of charities including Action for Blind People before founding the charity South East London Vision in 2014. Prior to becoming an MP, de Cordova was the engagement and advocacy director at the charity, Thomas Pocklington Trust.

Political career

De Cordova was elected as a Labour Party councillor for the Larkhall ward on Lambeth Council in 2014. She was elected as MP for

in the 2017 general election. It was previously held by

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

politician Jane Ellison since 2010. De Cordova was appointed as the Shadow Minister for Disabled People on 9 October 2017, replacing

Marie Rimmer Marie Elizabeth Rimmer, (born 27 April 1947) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for St Helens South and Whiston since 2015. She has previously been a local councillor for St Helens Metropolitan B ...

. She was promoted to Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities by new Labour leader,

Keir Starmer Sir Keir Rodney Starmer (born 2 September 1962) is a British politician and lawyer who has served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom since 2024 and as Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party since 2020. He previously ...

, replacing Dawn Butler. As an MP, she has been involved in campaigning to make the

Parliamentary Estate The Parliamentary Estate is the land and buildings used by the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The most notable part of the Parliamentary Estate is the Palace of Westminster, where the chambers of both houses of Parliament (the Commons and th ...

more accessible for disabled people. In May 2021, alongside celebrities and other public figures, de Cordova was a signatory to an open letter from the magazine '' Stylist'', which called on the government to address what it described as an "epidemic of male violence" by funding an "ongoing, high-profile, expert-informed awareness campaign on men's violence against women and girls". In August 2021, de Cordova was criticised for not attending an annual Stonewall event about the Labour Party and LGBT+ rights due to 'diary clashes'. She was the first shadow equalities secretary to not attend the event since it was created. De Cordova resigned from her post as shadow equalities secretary in September 2021 in order to focus on her marginal constituency of Battersea. She was appointed Second Church Estates Commissioner, responsible for representing the

Church Commissioners The Church Commissioners is a body which administers the property assets of the Church of England. It was established in 1948 and combined the assets of Queen Anne's Bounty, a fund dating from 1704 for the relief of poor clergy, and of the Eccle ...

in Parliament and in the

General Synod The General Synod is the title of the governing body of some church organizations. Anglican Communion The General Synod of the Church of England, which was established in 1970 replacing the Church Assembly, is the legislative body of the Church ...

of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

, on 7 October 2024.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:de Cordova, Marsha 1976 births Living people Alumni of London South Bank University UK MPs 2017–2019 Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Female members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies Councillors in the London Borough of Lambeth Blind politicians Black British women politicians Labour Party (UK) councillors 21st-century British women politicians 21st-century English women UK MPs 2019–2024 UK MPs 2024–present Black British MPs Women councillors in England English blind people British politicians with disabilities Labour Friends of Palestine and the Middle East Socialist Campaign Group