The Walthamstow East

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 ...

of 27 March 1969 was held following the death of

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

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 ...

(MP) William Robinson. The seat was won by the opposition

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 ...

Background

The

Conservatives 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 in ...

had gained the seat from

1955 Events January * January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama. * January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut. * January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...

and held it at the next two elections. In

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

the Conservative majority had fallen to just 395 votes over Labour, whose candidate was William Robinson, a solicitor who had been a member of Leyton Borough Council between 1945 and 1952 and then had been elected to Wanstead and Woodford Borough Council, serving as

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of the latter in 1962–63. In

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

Robinson had stood again and had taken the seat for Labour with a majority of 1,807 votes.

Results

Aftermath

This defeat marked the twelfth time that Labour had failed to successfully defend a seat it held at a by-election since the last general election. The gain at Walthamstow was one of three Conservative wins in by-elections held that day, with the Party also retaining Brighton Pavilion and holding Weston-super-Mare from Labour. Across the three contests there was an average swing of 16% from Labour to Conservative, which Conservative

Shadow Home Secretary In British politics, the Shadow Home Secretary (formally known as the Shadow Secretary of State for the Home Department) is the person within the shadow cabinet who shadows the Home Secretary; this effectively means scrutinising government polic ...

Quintin Hogg noted would give his party a comfortable majority in the House of Commons if repeated at the next general election.

Anthony Barber Anthony Perrinott Lysberg Barber, Baron Barber, (4 July 1920 – 16 December 2005) was a British Conservative politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1970 to 1974. After serving in both the Territorial Army and the Royal A ...

, the

Chairman of the Conservative Party The chairman of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom is responsible for party administration and overseeing the Conservative Campaign Headquarters, formerly Conservative Central Office. When the Conservatives are in government, the offic ...

, noted that his party had now won 10 seats from Labour since the last general election and called on the Labour Government to "throw in the towel." The next day's ''Glasgow Herald'' reported that the "dispiriting performance" by Labour in the three by-elections, the first contests of 1969, raised questions as to when the tide would turn for the party and noted that "some Labour MPS feel in their bones" that the party could not recover to win the general election which would come within the next two years. However the same article noted that the much reduced turnout in Walthamstow East (and in the Brighton contest) had distorted the results and could be argued by Labour as evidence that its supporters had stayed at home and were reserving their judgement on the Government. At the 1970 election McNair-Wilson would narrowly hold the seat.

References

{{By-elections to the 44th UK Parliament Walthamstow East by-election Walthamstow East,1969 Walthamstow East by-election Walthamstow East,1969 Walthamstow Walthamstow East by-election