At the 1868 general election he was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Warrington, but lost the seat at the 1874 general election, when he also stood unsuccessfully in the South-Eastern Division of Lancashire.
At the 1868 general election Rylands was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Warrington. He lost his Warrington seat at the 1874 general election, when he also stood unsuccessfully in the South-Eastern Division of Lancashire.