South West Norfolk by-election, 1959
Encyclopedia
The South West Norfolk by-election
of 25 March 1959 was held after Labour
Member of Parliament
(MP) Sidney Dye
died on 9 December 1958. The seat was retained by Labour.
as their candidate for the by-election. A leading member of the National Union of Agricultural and Allied Workers
, Hilton was a longstanding party activist who held the seat until he was defeated in the 1964 general election
. He would go on to sit in the House of Lords
.
Barrister Elaine Kellett
ran for the Conservative Party
in one of a number of unsuccessful candidacies for the party. She went on to serve as MP for Lancaster
and MEP for North West England
.
The third candidate, Andrew Fountaine
, ran as an Independent Nationalist, adopting a far right
platform immediately before being appointed President of the National Labour Party
. He would become a leading figure in the National Front
as well as briefly leading his own party, the Constitutional Movement
.
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
of 25 March 1959 was held after 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) Sidney Dye
Sidney Dye
Sidney Dye, JP was a British Labour Party politician.Born at Wells-next-the-Sea, Norfolk, Sidney Dye was educated at Wells Elementary School and Ruskin College, Oxford....
died on 9 December 1958. The seat was retained by Labour.
Candidates
Labour chose Albert HiltonAlbert Hilton, Baron Hilton of Upton
Albert Victor Hilton, Baron Hilton of Upton, JP was a British farm labourer and trade union official who became a Labour Party Member of Parliament and later life peer.-Farming career:...
as their candidate for the by-election. A leading member of the National Union of Agricultural and Allied Workers
National Union of Agricultural and Allied Workers
The National Union of Agricultural and Allied Workers was a trade union in the United Kingdom.It was established as the Eastern Counties Agricultural Labourers & Small Holders Union at a conference of Norfolk agricultural workers at the Angel Hotel, North Walsham on 20 July 1906...
, Hilton was a longstanding party activist who held the seat until he was defeated in the 1964 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
. He would go on to sit in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
.
Barrister Elaine Kellett
Elaine Kellett-Bowman
Dame Mary Elaine Kellett-Bowman, DBE is a British Conservative politician.Born Mary Elaine Kay, she was educated at The Mount School, York, St Anne's College, Oxford and Barnett House, Oxford, and became a barrister, called to the bar by Middle Temple in 1964...
ran for 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...
in one of a number of unsuccessful candidacies for the party. She went on to serve as MP for Lancaster
Lancaster (UK Parliament constituency)
Lancaster was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1867, centred on the historic city of Lancaster in north-west England...
and MEP for North West England
North West England (European Parliament constituency)
North West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For the 2009 elections it elects 8 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.-Boundaries:...
.
The third candidate, Andrew Fountaine
Andrew Fountaine
Andrew Fountaine was a veteran of the far right scene in British politics.Born into a land-owning Norfolk family, Fountaine was educated at the Army College in Aldershot and was the son of Vice Admiral Charles Fountaine who had been naval ADC to King George V...
, ran as an Independent Nationalist, adopting a far right
Far right
Far-right, extreme right, hard right, radical right, and ultra-right are terms used to discuss the qualitative or quantitative position a group or person occupies within right-wing politics. Far-right politics may involve anti-immigration and anti-integration stances towards groups that are...
platform immediately before being appointed President of the National Labour Party
National Labour Party (UK, 1957)
The National Labour Party was a far right political party founded in 1957 by John Bean. The party campaigned on a platform of white nationalism, opposition to non-white immigration and anti-Semitism.-Formation:...
. He would become a leading figure in the National Front
British National Front
The National Front is a far right, white-only political party whose major political activities took place during the 1970s and 1980s. Its popularity peaked in the 1979 general election, when it received 191,719 votes ....
as well as briefly leading his own party, the Constitutional Movement
Constitutional Movement
The Constitutional Movement was a right wing political group in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1979 by Andrew Fountaine as the National Front Constitutional Movement, a splinter group from the National Front...
.