Complex sentence: In 2003 John Burnett announced he would not be contesting the seat again and, at the 2005 general election, Cox's candidacy proved to be successful, as he defeated the new Liberal Democrat candidate, David Walter, with a majority of 3,236.
Split into simpler sentences: In 2003 John Burnett announced he would not be contesting the seat again. Geoffrey Cox successfully contested the seat again at the 2005 general election, and defeated a new Liberal Democrat candidate, David Walter, with a majority of 3,236.