Isle of Ely by-election, 1973
Encyclopedia
The Isle of Ely by-election, 1973 was a parliamentary by-election
held on 26 July 1973 for the British House of Commons
constituency
of Isle of Ely
.
The by-election took place during the 1970s Liberal Party
revival. This seat and Ripon
were gained on the same day, the third and fourth Liberal gains during the Parliament. This was the first time since 1899 that the Liberal Party had made two by-election gains on the same day, when it won both seats in a two member constituency at the Oldham by-election
. The last time the party had last gained two seats, in different constituencies on the same day was on 2 June 1896, at the Frome and the Wick Burghs by-elections.
(MP), Major Sir Harry Legge-Bourke KBE
(16 May 1914 – 21 May 1973). Legge-Bourke, a Conservative
, had gained the seat from the Liberal Party in the 1945 general election
.
1. The Liberal Party candidate was Clement Freud
. He was the grandson of Sigmund Freud
and well known as a writer and broadcaster.
Freud won the by-election, in a seat which his party had not contested in the 1970 general election. He retained the constituency until it was renamed in 1983, with most of the territory incorporated into the constituency of North East Cambridgeshire. Freud retained that seat until he was defeated in the United Kingdom general election, 1987
.
2. The Conservative candidate was J.B. Stevens, who had contested Birmingham Stechford
in the 1970 general election
. Stevens again lost to Clement Freud, in Ely, at the February 1974 general election
.
3. The Labour Party
was represented by B.A. Young.
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
held on 26 July 1973 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 Isle of Ely
Isle of Ely (UK Parliament constituency)
Isle of Ely was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, centred on the Isle of Ely in Cambridgeshire...
.
The by-election took place during the 1970s 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...
revival. This seat and Ripon
Ripon (UK Parliament constituency)
Ripon was a constituency sending members to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until 1983, centred on the city of Ripon in North Yorkshire.-History:...
were gained on the same day, the third and fourth Liberal gains during the Parliament. This was the first time since 1899 that the Liberal Party had made two by-election gains on the same day, when it won both seats in a two member constituency at the Oldham by-election
Oldham by-election, 1899
The Oldham by-election of 1899 occurred in the summer of that year, and involved a by-election to fill both seats in the two-member Oldham Parliamentary borough. The block voting method allowed each elector to vote for two candidates...
. The last time the party had last gained two seats, in different constituencies on the same day was on 2 June 1896, at the Frome and the Wick Burghs by-elections.
Previous MP
The seat had become vacant on the death of the constituency's Member of ParliamentMember 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), Major Sir Harry Legge-Bourke KBE
Harry Legge-Bourke
Major Sir Edward Alexander Henry Legge-Bourke KBE was a British politician.He served alongside Jock Colville as a Page of Honour from 1926. Educated at Eton College and Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Legge-Bourke was commissioned into the Royal Horse Guards in 1934. He served there throughout...
(16 May 1914 – 21 May 1973). Legge-Bourke, a Conservative
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...
, had gained the seat from the Liberal Party in the 1945 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1945
The United Kingdom general election of 1945 was a general election held on 5 July 1945, with polls in some constituencies delayed until 12 July and in Nelson and Colne until 19 July, due to local wakes weeks. The results were counted and declared on 26 July, due in part to the time it took to...
.
Candidates
Three candidates were nominated. The list below is set out in descending order of the number of votes received at the by-election.1. The Liberal Party candidate was Clement Freud
Clement Freud
Sir Clement Raphael Freud was an English broadcaster, writer, politician and chef.-Early life:Freud was born in Berlin, the son of Jewish parents Ernst Ludwig Freud and Lucie née Brasch. He was the grandson of psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud and the brother of artist Lucian Freud...
. He was the grandson of Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
and well known as a writer and broadcaster.
Freud won the by-election, in a seat which his party had not contested in the 1970 general election. He retained the constituency until it was renamed in 1983, with most of the territory incorporated into the constituency of North East Cambridgeshire. Freud retained that seat until he was defeated in the United Kingdom general election, 1987
United Kingdom general election, 1987
The United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the British House of Commons. The election was the third consecutive election victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, who became the first Prime Minister since the 2nd...
.
2. The Conservative candidate was J.B. Stevens, who had contested Birmingham Stechford
Birmingham Stechford (UK Parliament constituency)
Birmingham Stechford was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Stechford district of the city of Birmingham. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system.The constituency was created...
in the 1970 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1970
The United Kingdom general election of 1970 was held on 18 June 1970, and resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, who defeated the Labour Party under Harold Wilson. The election also saw the Liberal Party and its new leader Jeremy Thorpe lose half their...
. Stevens again lost to Clement Freud, in Ely, at the February 1974 general election
United Kingdom general election, February 1974
The United Kingdom's general election of February 1974 was held on the 28th of that month. It was the first of two United Kingdom general elections held that year, and the first election since the Second World War not to produce an overall majority in the House of Commons for the winning party,...
.
3. The Labour Party
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...
was represented by B.A. Young.
Votes
See also
- Isle of Ely constituencyIsle of Ely (UK Parliament constituency)Isle of Ely was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, centred on the Isle of Ely in Cambridgeshire...
- List of United Kingdom by-elections
- United Kingdom by-election recordsUnited Kingdom by-election recordsUK by-election records is an annotated list of notable records from UK Parliamentary by-elections. A by-election occurs when a Member of Parliament resigns, dies, or is disqualified or expelled, and an election is held to fill the vacant seat...