The 1960 Bolton East by-election was a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

held for the

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 mem ...

constituency An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger State (polity), state (a country, administrative region, ...

of Bolton East in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

on 16 November 1960. It was won by the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

candidate Edwin Taylor.

Vacancy

The seat became vacant when the sitting

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

Philip Bell, QC, was appointed as a County Court Judge. He had held the seat since the 1951 general election. The by-election saw the decision of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

to field a candidate, which broke a local pact which had held for 10 years whereby the Liberals left the Bolton East seat alone, and in return the Conservatives did not stand in Bolton West; the pact had achieved its objective of preventing the Labour Party from winning either.

Result

Taylor was elected by a margin of 641 votes over Labour candidate

Robert Howarth Robert Lever Howarth (31 July 1927 – 2 April 2021) was a British politician from Bolton who was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Bolton East from 1964 to 1970. Early life and career Howarth was born in July 1927, the son of James Howarth an ...

, with the Liberal candidate

Frank Byers Charles Frank Byers, Baron Byers, (24 July 1915 – 6 February 1984) was a British Liberal Party politician who later became a life peer and Privy Councillor. Background Byers was born in Wallasey, Cheshire. He was the son of Charles Cecil By ...

securing a quarter of the vote. Dissension within the Labour Party over nuclear disarmament was thought to have helped Taylor win. At the 1964 general election, a more organised Labour campaign in Bolton East saw Taylor voted out by a margin of more than 3,000 votes. A Conservative stood in Bolton West for the first time since 1950, resulting in a Labour gain from the Liberal Arthur Holt by roughly the same margin.

Votes

References

British Parliamentary by-elections: Bolton East 1960

at Richard Kimber's political science resources * {{By-elections to the 42nd UK Parliament By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Greater Manchester constituencies 1960 elections in the United Kingdom 1960 in England 1960s in Lancashire Elections in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Lancashire constituencies