Middlesbrough West by-election, 1945

The Middlesbrough West by-election, 1945 was a parliamentary by-election

By-election

A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....

held on 14 May 1945 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 Middlesbrough West

Middlesbrough West (UK Parliament constituency)

Middlesbrough West was a parliamentary constituency in the town of Middlesbrough in North East England. 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....

Previous MP

The seat had become vacant when the constituency's Liberal Member of Parliament (MP), Harcourt Johnstone

Harcourt Johnstone

Harcourt 'Crinks' Johnstone was a British Liberal Party politician.-Early Life & Education:Johnstone was born in London in 1895, the son of the Hon. Sir Alan Johnstone, a British diplomat, and his American wife Antoinette Pinchot. His nickname 'Crinks' is alleged to have derived from the wrinkled...

(19 May 1895 – 1 March 1945) died.

Johnstone was elected unopposed as the constituency's MP at the Middlesbrough West by-election, 1940

Middlesbrough West by-election, 1940

The Middlesbrough West by-election, 1940 was a parliamentary by-election held on 7 August 1940 for the British House of Commons constituency of Middlesbrough West.- Previous MP :...

, caused by the previous Liberal MP Frank Kingsley Griffith

Frank Kingsley Griffith

Frank Kingsley Griffith was a British Liberal Party politician, barrister and County Court judge.-Early life:...

becoming a County Court Judge. Johnstone had previously been MP for Willesden East

Willesden East (UK Parliament constituency)

Willesden East was a borough constituency in the Municipal Borough of Willesden, in North-West London. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....

1923 - 1924 and South Shields

South Shields (UK Parliament constituency)

South Shields 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.-Boundaries:...

1931 - 1935.

Candidates

The election took place during the Second World War. Under an agreement between the Conservative, Labour and Liberal parties; who were participating in a wartime coalition, the party holding a seat would not be opposed by the other two at a by-election. Accordingly the Liberal Party nominated a candidate, but no Labour or Conservative representative was put forward. As no one else was nominated, there was an unopposed return and no poll took place.

The Liberal Party candidate, supporting the coalition government, was the war hero Air Vice Marshal Donald Clifford Tyndall Bennett

Don Bennett

Air Vice Marshal Donald Clifford Tyndall Bennett CB CBE DSO RAF was an Australian aviation pioneer and bomber pilot who rose to be the youngest Air Vice-Marshal in the Royal Air Force. He led the "Pathfinder Force" from 1942 to the end of the Second World War in 1945...

(14 September 1910 - 15 September 1986). After winning the by-election, he only served in Parliament between May and June 1945. Bennett was defeated by a Labour candidate in the United Kingdom general election, 1945

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...

.

Bennett stood as a Liberal candidate in the Croydon North by-election, 1948

Croydon North by-election, 1948

The Croydon North by-election, 1948 was a parliamentary by-election held in the British House of Commons constituency of Croydon North on 11 March 1948...

and at Norwich North in the 1950 general election

United Kingdom general election, 1950

The 1950 United Kingdom general election was the first general election ever after a full term of a Labour government. Despite polling over one and a half million votes more than the Conservatives, the election, held on 23 February 1950 resulted in Labour receiving a slim majority of just five...

. In the 1960s he was a National Party

National Fellowship

The National Fellowship was a minor far right political party in the United Kingdom.The party was launched under Chairman Edward Martell on 1 January 1962, with full page advertisements in national broadsheets. The advert referred to the organisation as part of a movement spearheaded by The New...

candidate at the Nuneaton by-election, 1967

Nuneaton by-election, 1967

The Nuneaton by-election of 16 December 1966 was held after the resignation of Labour MP Frank Cousins:The seat was safe, having been won by Labour at the United Kingdom general election, 1966 by over 11,000 votes-Candidates:...

Previous MP

Candidates

Votes

See also