On 4 July 2014 it was announced that Malthouse would be selected as the Conservative candidate in the 2015 general election for the North West Hampshire constituency. The seat had been occupied by Sir George Young since 1997, who announced in 2013 that he would retire in 2015. In March 2015 Malthouse resigned his position as Deputy Mayor of London to concentrate on his parliamentary campaign; the office remained vacant until 2016. He won the seat in North West Hampshire with a majority of 23,943.