Lewisham by-election, 1903
Encyclopedia
The Lewisham by-election, 1903 was a by-election
held on 15 December 1903 for the British House of Commons
constituency
of Lewisham
.
The by-election was triggered by the death of the serving Conservative Party
Member of Parliament
(MP), John Penn.
The Unionist
candidate was Major Edward Coates. The Liberal Party
candidate was J. W. Cleland.
As with the Dulwich by-election
held on the same day, the main issue was tariff reform and Joseph Chamberlain
's proposals for Imperial Preference
. A factor which made the result of the by election difficult to predict was that the seat had not been contested since 1892 and in that time the population had doubled in size. The additional residents, according to the Times, were mainly "City men, with comparatively small incomes"..
In the event, the result was a comfortable win for the Unionist candidate.
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
held on 15 December 1903 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 Lewisham
Lewisham (UK Parliament constituency)
Lewisham was a borough constituency in the Lewisham district of London. 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 system.-History:...
.
The by-election was triggered by the death of the serving 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...
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), John Penn.
The Unionist
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...
candidate was Major Edward Coates. 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 J. W. Cleland.
As with the Dulwich by-election
Dulwich by-election, 1903
The Dulwich by-election, 1903 was a by-election held on 15 December 1903 for the British House of Commons constituency of Dulwich in South London....
held on the same day, the main issue was tariff reform and Joseph Chamberlain
Joseph Chamberlain
Joseph Chamberlain was an influential British politician and statesman. Unlike most major politicians of the time, he was a self-made businessman and had not attended Oxford or Cambridge University....
's proposals for Imperial Preference
Imperial Preference
Imperial Preference was a proposed system of reciprocally-levelled tariffs or free trade agreements between the dominions and colonies within the British Empire...
. A factor which made the result of the by election difficult to predict was that the seat had not been contested since 1892 and in that time the population had doubled in size. The additional residents, according to the Times, were mainly "City men, with comparatively small incomes"..
In the event, the result was a comfortable win for the Unionist candidate.
Votes
See also
- List of United Kingdom by-elections
- Lewisham constituencyLewisham (UK Parliament constituency)Lewisham was a borough constituency in the Lewisham district of London. 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 system.-History:...