A man formerly serving as a council member has been sentenced to 20 weeks in jail for stalking Dame Penny Mordaunt, a former candidate for the Tory leadership. Edward Brandt, aged 61, was found guilty at Southampton Crown Court for repeatedly contacting Dame Penny through emails and phone messages, as well as visiting her constituency office outside of regular hours between September 11, 2023, and May 12, 2024.
Although Brandt was acquitted of a more severe charge related to causing serious alarm or distress, Dame Penny expressed feeling threatened by potential sexual violence due to Brandt’s unsettling actions. The court also sentenced Brandt for seven violations in December 2025 of a stalking protection order until November 2034, for failing to report devices with internet access and creating social media accounts without permission.
Brandt, a divorced father of two and professional sailor, received a 12-week prison term for the stalking offense and an additional eight weeks for the breaches of the protection order, to be served consecutively.