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With the resignation of David Laws, the leadership fell to his Deputy, Lynne Featherstone. In any other situation, the first woman to lead the Liberal Democrats and the second to lead a major political party in Britain would have been cause for celebration. But, as the ship was heading towards the rocks, there would be little time for any kind of festivities, as there were more pressing matters to attend to. Featherstone would win the Leadership election of 2015 on the argument that the party needed stability and continuity; others would note that the Leadership had become a poisoned chalice with the rapidly approaching General Election, and the expected contenders- Nick Clegg and Norman Lamb- were holding back until they were in a better position. Whatever the case, she won the Leadership without significant opposition, and was immediately thrown into the deep end.

The 2015 Local Elections would be a nightmare for the Party. With the effects of Laws resignation and a feeling of distrust towards the Liberal Democrats in full swing, it was expected that the Party would struggle. In spite of this, Featherstone did her best to ensure her Party would not fail, the energetic campaign highlighting her own clean expenses record and a change in the style of Leadership to one more earthly and related to the electorate. However, she was unable to shake the distrust that had accumulated around the Party, particularly as a high profile incident involving Councillors in Portsmouth seemed to only reinforce the perception of the Party was untrustworthy. The results were poor- the Liberal Democrats sunk by a net loss of some 35 council seats, unable to exploit the Conservatives losses, whilst Cruddas' Labour overtook both with a net gain of 400 seats. UKIP would steady net gain of 135, mainly drawing from the Conservatives but also from the Liberals, whilst concerningly the party London First! would gain control of a handful of London Councils at the expense of the Liberal Democrats.

For the rest of the year, the Party was on war footing. Collins could call a General Election at any moment, and the focus turned from offensive to defensive after internal polling showed a dire situation in the South and Midlands. Featherstone herself would find the Leadership frustrating- many in her Frontbench, holdovers from Laws, were keen to keep on course with the planned Manifesto, which was set to be Orange Book through and through. Few recognised her as a true leader, with her often referred to privately as 'the caretaker', and kept out of the loop of certain policy details. This is not to say she didn't have successes- her firmly pro-LGBT social policy, whilst being a driving rod in some quarters, was received warmly by the Party as a whole and in the media, the all-woman shortlist was accepted for the next election, and following the amiable departure of Vince Cable in September, Julia Goldsworthy took his place as the Treasury Spokesperson. However, she was still undermined and faced resistance in other areas, such as Foreign Policy.

The fragility of her position was unhelped by the parties failure in the Oldham West and Royton by-election in January, with the Party coming third against Labour and UKIP. Whilst the seat was always expected to go back to Labour, as it was considered at the time one of the safest in the country, UKIP's success in the by-election was a dire message. In the aftermath, Featherstone would allege that the campaign had been dirty, UKIP having fought it along racial and gender lines, exploiting the diverse makeup of Oldham West and Royton and the fact the top two positions in the Liberal Democrats were held by women. Whilst Paul Nuttal would not help him or his Party when dismissing the allegations, the allegation were used against her in the General Election by opponents wanting to paint her as the sexist caricature of a 'hysterical woman', and one who would not accept the election results.

And the results of the 2016 General Election were disastrous. Fought on the new 600 seat boundaries, it was expected that the Liberal Democrats would take loses, however the degree of loss was alarming. In England and Wales, the campaign concerned itself with questions of trust and economics, particularly if the Government and Opposition proved that they could be trusted on the economy, as between the harsh austerity Budgets of David Cameron and the lingering memories of the Miliband years, few saw the Liberal Democrats or UKIP as being true alternatives. Public trust would also be an issue, but quickly became a stick to beat the Liberal Democrats with by all parties. In Scotland, the election saw itself would take a different form; with the Scottish Independence referendum but only a year away, many would believe that the election would give indication to how Scotland would swing. The Scottish Liberal Democrats, under the unofficial leadership of Michael Moore, would be forced to ensure they were not squashed between Labour and the SNP, fighting a vigorous campaign that garnered more attention than Featherstone's- embarrassingly, at the Debates an audience member would ask why Featherstone was on stage and not Moore. In the end, the Party slumped in vote share and received only 15.2% of the vote, holding 24 seats, a loss of 19 seats from the last election. The Conservatives came first at just 299 with 34.4% of the vote, two short of a majority. Labour was close behind at 242 to 31.2%. The SNP suffered a disappointing night, returning only with 12 seats, despite having beaten both Labour and the Liberal Democrats in the popular vote in Scotland. UKIP would return with one seat and 10.2% of the vote. London First! would claim two seats from the Liberal Democrats in Kingston and Richmond Park, taking out Goldsworthy in the latter- they would come close to taking Featherstone herself out, although failed, giving her a reduced majority of barely two hundred.

It was a hung Parliament. Featherstone had made no secret of her distain for the Conservative Party, and was hesitant towards a coalition deal. As a result, by the time the Liberal Democrats were prepared to negotiate with the Conservative Party, the Tories had had met, negotiated, and struck a deal with the Democrat Unionist Party in Northern Ireland. An oft reported story would allege that as Featherstone, Moore, and Clegg were travelling to meet the Conservatives, they would be forced to stop in traffic and watch the Car decorated in Blue and Red ribbon head to the palace. Regardless of the validity of this story, what is true is that by the time Featherstone was prepared to accept the Conservatives invitation, she was too late.

There was some glimmer of hope; in Scotland, the down ballot effect of Moore's campaign would see the Party make its first gains in years; not enough to spring the party significantly forward, but enough to deny the SNP a majority, edging out the Scottish Greens, who were squashed between the unstoppable force of their former Coalition partners and the irresistible object of Scottish Labour. The Tories made some headway, particularly along the borders and in Perth. Whilst Scotland would offer Featherstone relief, London would not, with London First! eroding what few seats the Liberal Democrats held.

Featherstone resigned shortly after the new Government formed when it became clear she would not receive support in a continued Leadership. The boat had hit rocks, and whilst it wasn't as damaging as some expected, it was still taking on water. Featherstone herself would lend support to Norman Lamb's failed run for the Leadership, and eventually served as the Spokesperson for Community Affairs under her successor. As with her successors, it is perhaps too early to judge the impact of her brief Leadership, though it is generally agreed that, had she become Leader in 2011, or in any other circumstance, then perhaps she would have had some success. But in the circumstances she was dealt, she did not, despite her best efforts.