Belfast South by-election, 1952
Encyclopedia
The Belfast South by-election, 1952 was held following the resignation of Ulster Unionist Party
(UUP) Member of Parliament
, Hugh Gage.
had consistently elected UUP members since its recreation in 1922, and no Irish nationalist had even stood in the seat in that period. The opposition came from the labour movement
. Gage had first won the seat at the 1945 UK general election, but he faced opponents from both the Commonwealth Labour Party
(CWLP) and the Northern Ireland Labour Party
(NILP), who, between them, had taken 48% of the vote. The CWLP had merged with the UUP in 1947, so by the 1950 UK general election, Gage was able to take three-quarters of the vote, the rest going to a NILP opponent. The vote shares barely changed at the 1951 UK general election.
, while the NILP opted to stand their party secretary, Sam Napier. Napier had stood for the Northern Ireland House of Commons twice, for North Down
in 1949
and for the Queen's University of Belfast
in 1953
.
was held on 4 November 1952. Campbell easily won the seat, taking more than three-quarters of the votes, in a near repeat of the result of the two previous general elections. He held the seat until his death in 1963.
Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...
(UUP) Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
, Hugh Gage.
History
Belfast SouthBelfast South (UK Parliament constituency)
Belfast South is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons.-Boundaries:The seat was created in 1922 when, as part of the establishment of the devolved Stormont Parliament for Northern Ireland, the number of MPs in the Westminster Parliament was drastically cut...
had consistently elected UUP members since its recreation in 1922, and no Irish nationalist had even stood in the seat in that period. The opposition came from the labour movement
Labour movement
The term labour movement or labor movement is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and governments, in particular through the implementation of specific laws governing labour...
. Gage had first won the seat at the 1945 UK general election, but he faced opponents from both the Commonwealth Labour Party
Commonwealth Labour Party
The Commonwealth Labour Party was a minor political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1942 by Harry Midgley, former leader of the Northern Ireland Labour Party , in order to pursue his brand of labour unionism....
(CWLP) and the Northern Ireland Labour Party
Northern Ireland Labour Party
The Northern Ireland Labour Party was an Irish political party which operated from 1924 until 1987.In 1913 the British Labour Party resolved to give the recently formed Irish Labour Party exclusive organising rights in Ireland...
(NILP), who, between them, had taken 48% of the vote. The CWLP had merged with the UUP in 1947, so by the 1950 UK general election, Gage was able to take three-quarters of the vote, the rest going to a NILP opponent. The vote shares barely changed at the 1951 UK general election.
Candidates
The UUP selected David CampbellDavid Campbell (South Belfast MP)
Sir David Callender Campbell was an Ulster Unionist politician in Northern Ireland. He was elected Member of Parliament for Belfast South in a 1952 by-election, and served until his death in 1963...
, while the NILP opted to stand their party secretary, Sam Napier. Napier had stood for the Northern Ireland House of Commons twice, for North Down
North Down (Northern Ireland Parliament constituency)
North Down was a constituency of the Parliament of Northern Ireland.-Boundaries:North Down was a county constituency comprising part of northern County Down, immediately south east of Belfast. It was created when the House of Commons Act 1929 introduced first-past-the-post elections throughout...
in 1949
Northern Ireland general election, 1949
-References:*-See also:*MPs elected in the Northern Ireland general election, 1949...
and for the Queen's University of Belfast
Queen's University of Belfast (Northern Ireland Parliament constituency)
Queen's University of Belfast was a university constituency of the Parliament of Northern Ireland from 1921 until 1969. It returned four MPs, using the single transferable vote method of proportional representation...
in 1953
Northern Ireland general election, 1953
-References:*...
.
Result
The by-electionBy-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
was held on 4 November 1952. Campbell easily won the seat, taking more than three-quarters of the votes, in a near repeat of the result of the two previous general elections. He held the seat until his death in 1963.