Bishop Auckland by-election, 1929
Encyclopedia
The Bishop Auckland by-election, 1929 was a parliamentary by-election
held on 7 February 1929 for the British House of Commons
constituency
of Bishop Auckland
in County Durham
.
The seat had become vacant on 22 December 1928 when the constituency's Labour
Member of Parliament
(MP), Ben Spoor
had died aged 50. He had been elected for the previously Liberal
-held seat at the 1918 general election
, and held it through three further general elections.
had selected Hugh Dalton
as its prospective parliamentary candidate
. However, Dalton was already MP for the then-marginal Peckham
constituency in South London
, and had sought a safer seat
. He would have had to resign his Peckham seat to stand in Bishop Auckland. To add to the complications, even he had been minded to do that, a further complication was that the prospective Labour candidate for Peckham was John Beckett, the sitting MP for Gateshead
.
To avoid triggering two further by-elections, a Labour candidate was needed who would agree to stand down at the next general election. The seventy members of Bishop Auckland Constituency Labour Party
's general committee unanimously chose Hugh Dalton's wife Ruth
, because she could be relied on to resign in favour of her husband as soon as Parliament was dissolved; no other candidate was even considered.
The Liberal Party
candidate was Aaron Curry, who had contested Houghton-le-Spring
at the 1923
and 1924 general election
s, and who had also been unsuccessful at the Wallsend by-election in 1926. The Conservative Party
, which had not contested Bishop Auckland in 1924, selected as its candidate H. Thompson, who had not previously contested a Parliamentary election.
. Her share of the vote was slightly increased over Spoor's 1924 result, but a majority greatly increased by the division of the non-Labour vote between two candidates.
, having been the shortest-serving woman MP. Her 92 days in office is remains an unbeaten record, but it was equalled 45 years later by Margo McDonald, the Scottish National Party
MP for Glasgow Govan
from 8 November 1973 to 8 February 1974. She did not stand for Parliament
again.
Her husband Hugh
won the seat at the 1929 election, with Curry again in second place, but when Labour split two years later and Ramsay MacDonald
formed a National Government, Curry took the seat at the 1931 general election
. Dalton regained the seat in 1935
, and held it until he stood down in 1959
.
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
held on 7 February 1929 for the British House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
constituency
United Kingdom constituencies
In the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies:...
of Bishop Auckland
Bishop Auckland (UK Parliament constituency)
Bishop Auckland is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election. Since 1935 it has elected Labour MPs.-Boundaries:...
in County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
.
The seat had become vacant on 22 December 1928 when the constituency's Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
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,...
(MP), Ben Spoor
Ben Spoor
Benjamin Charles Spoor was a British Labour Party politician. He took a particular interest in India and in the Movement for Colonial Freedom....
had died aged 50. He had been elected for the previously Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
-held seat at the 1918 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1918
The United Kingdom general election of 1918 was the first to be held after the Representation of the People Act 1918, which meant it was the first United Kingdom general election in which nearly all adult men and some women could vote. Polling was held on 14 December 1918, although the count did...
, and held it through three further general elections.
Candidates
Spoor had planned to retire at the next general election, and the Bishop Auckland Constituency Labour PartyConstituency Labour Party
A Constituency Labour Party is an organisation of members of the British Labour Party who live in a particular UK parliamentary constituency in England, Scotland and Wales. The Labour Party in Northern Ireland has, since February 2009, been organised as a province-wide Constituency Labour Party...
had selected Hugh Dalton
Hugh Dalton
Edward Hugh John Neale Dalton, Baron Dalton PC was a British Labour Party politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1945 to 1947, when he was implicated in a political scandal involving budget leaks....
as its prospective parliamentary candidate
Prospective parliamentary candidate
Prospective parliamentary candidate is a term used in British politics to refer to candidates selected by political parties to fight individual constituencies in advance of a general election. This terminology was motivated by the strict limits on the amount of expenses incurred by an actual...
. However, Dalton was already MP for the then-marginal Peckham
Peckham (UK Parliament constituency)
Peckham was a borough constituency in South London which returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
constituency in South London
South London
South London is the southern part of London, England, United Kingdom.According to the 2011 official Boundary Commission for England definition, South London includes the London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Southwark, Sutton and...
, and had sought a safer seat
Safe seat
A safe seat is a seat in a legislative body which is regarded as fully secured, either by a certain political party, the incumbent representative personally or a combination of both...
. He would have had to resign his Peckham seat to stand in Bishop Auckland. To add to the complications, even he had been minded to do that, a further complication was that the prospective Labour candidate for Peckham was John Beckett, the sitting MP for Gateshead
Gateshead (UK Parliament constituency)
Gateshead is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election. A previous Gateshead constituency existed from 1832 to 1950....
.
To avoid triggering two further by-elections, a Labour candidate was needed who would agree to stand down at the next general election. The seventy members of Bishop Auckland Constituency Labour Party
Constituency Labour Party
A Constituency Labour Party is an organisation of members of the British Labour Party who live in a particular UK parliamentary constituency in England, Scotland and Wales. The Labour Party in Northern Ireland has, since February 2009, been organised as a province-wide Constituency Labour Party...
's general committee unanimously chose Hugh Dalton's wife Ruth
Ruth Dalton
Florence Ruth Dalton , known as Ruth Dalton and later Lady Dalton, was a British Labour Party politician...
, because she could be relied on to resign in favour of her husband as soon as Parliament was dissolved; no other candidate was even considered.
The Liberal Party
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
candidate was Aaron Curry, who had contested Houghton-le-Spring
Houghton-le-Spring (UK Parliament constituency)
Houghton-le-Spring was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 to 1983.Centred on the town of Houghton-le-Spring in the City of Sunderland, it elected one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election...
at the 1923
United Kingdom general election, 1923
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987*-External links:***...
and 1924 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1924
- Seats summary :- References :* F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987* - External links :* * *...
s, and who had also been unsuccessful at the Wallsend by-election in 1926. The Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
, which had not contested Bishop Auckland in 1924, selected as its candidate H. Thompson, who had not previously contested a Parliamentary election.
Result
On a slightly reduced turnout, Ruth Dalton held the seat for Labour, becoming the thirteenth woman elected to the House of CommonsBritish House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
. Her share of the vote was slightly increased over Spoor's 1924 result, but a majority greatly increased by the division of the non-Labour vote between two candidates.
Aftermath
Ruth Dalton stood down as agreed at the general election in May 1929United Kingdom general election, 1929
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987*-External links:***...
, having been the shortest-serving woman MP. Her 92 days in office is remains an unbeaten record, but it was equalled 45 years later by Margo McDonald, the Scottish National Party
Scottish National Party
The Scottish National Party is a social-democratic political party in Scotland which campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom....
MP for Glasgow Govan
Glasgow Govan (UK Parliament constituency)
Glasgow Govan was a parliamentary constituency in the Govan district of Glasgow. It was represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 until 2005, returning one Member of Parliament elected by the first-past-the-post system.The area which the constituency...
from 8 November 1973 to 8 February 1974. She did not stand for Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
again.
Her husband Hugh
Hugh Dalton
Edward Hugh John Neale Dalton, Baron Dalton PC was a British Labour Party politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1945 to 1947, when he was implicated in a political scandal involving budget leaks....
won the seat at the 1929 election, with Curry again in second place, but when Labour split two years later and Ramsay MacDonald
Ramsay MacDonald
James Ramsay MacDonald, PC, FRS was a British politician who was the first ever Labour Prime Minister, leading a minority government for two terms....
formed a National Government, Curry took the seat at the 1931 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1931
The United Kingdom general election on Tuesday 27 October 1931 was the last in the United Kingdom not held on a Thursday. It was also the last election, and the only one under universal suffrage, where one party received an absolute majority of the votes cast.The 1931 general election was the...
. Dalton regained the seat in 1935
United Kingdom general election, 1935
The United Kingdom general election held on 14 November 1935 resulted in a large, though reduced, majority for the National Government now led by Conservative Stanley Baldwin. The greatest number of MPs, as before, were Conservative, while the National Liberal vote held steady...
, and held it until he stood down in 1959
United Kingdom general election, 1959
This United Kingdom general election was held on 8 October 1959. It marked a third successive victory for the ruling Conservative Party, led by Harold Macmillan...
.
Votes
See also
- Bishop Auckland constituencyBishop Auckland (UK Parliament constituency)Bishop Auckland is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election. Since 1935 it has elected Labour MPs.-Boundaries:...
- The town of Bishop AucklandBishop AucklandBishop Auckland is a market town and civil parish in County Durham in north east England. It is located about northwest of Darlington and southwest of Durham at the confluence of the River Wear with its tributary the River Gaunless...
- List of United Kingdom by-elections (1918–1931)