Pat Marsh has resigned as a councillor on North Yorkshire Council following comments that were widely regarded as antisemitic.
A council spokesperson confirmed she has quit representing the Stray, Woodlands and Hookstone division and a by-election will now be held.
It signals the end of a three-decade career in local politics where she had been at the heart of the Liberal Democrats’ Harrogate district operation until her spectacular downfall last week.
The comments made in January and February on social media platform X led to her suspension from the party but she had indicated she planned to continue as an independent.
Ms Marsh won with 1,350 votes when the division was last contested in 2022 and the by-election could be close.
Conservative John Ennis came second with 910 votes, Labour’s Helen Burke was third with 189 votes and independent Anna McIntee was fourth with 167 votes.
North Yorkshire Police investigating a potential hate crime arrested the former mayor of Harrogate. She has since been released under investigation.