Ministerial by-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom at Westminster were held from 1801 to the 1920s when a Member of Parliament (MP) was appointed as a

minister Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

in the government. Unlike most Westminster by-elections, ministerial by-elections were often a formality, uncontested by opposition parties. Re-election was required under the

Succession to the Crown Act 1707 The Succession to the Crown Act 1707 (6 Ann c 41) is an Act of Parliament of the Parliament of Great Britain. It is still partly in force in Great Britain. The Act was passed at a time when Parliament was anxious to ensure the succession of a P ...

. This was in line with the principle established in 1624 that accepting an office of profit from the Crown would precipitate resignation from the House, with the option of standing for re-election. Typically a minister sought re-election in the constituency he had just vacated, but occasionally contested another seat which was also vacant. In 1910 '' The Times'' newspaper noted that the relevant Act had been passed in the reign of Queen Anne "to prevent the Court from swamping the House of Commons with placemen and pensioners", and described the process as "anomalous" and "indefensible" in the 20th century. The Re-Election of Ministers Act 1919 ended the necessity to seek re-election within nine months of a

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

, and the Re-Election of Ministers Act (1919) Amendment Act 1926 ended the practice in all other cases.

Ministerial by-elections

34th Parliament (1924–1929)

31st Parliament (1919–1922)

30th Parliament (August 1914 – 1918)

10th Parliament (1831–1832)

9th Parliament (1830–1831)

8th Parliament (1826–1830)

7th Parliament (1820–1826)

6th Parliament (1818–1820)

5th Parliament (1812–1818)

4th Parliament (1807–1812)

3rd Parliament (1806–1807)

2nd Parliament (1802–1806)

1st Parliament (1801–1802)

References

{{reflist * Ministerial