The 1993 Newbury by-election was triggered by the death of the Member of Parliament (MP) for
Newbury, the
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 ...
Judith Chaplin
Sybil Judith Chaplin , known as Judith Chaplin (née Schofield; 19 August 193919 February 1993), was a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom.
Career
Chaplin was elected councillor for Norfolk County Council 1975, following her h ...
. The by-election was held on 6 May 1993, and was won by
David Rendel
David Digby Rendel (15 April 1949 – 16 May 2016) was a British politician for the Liberal Democrats. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Newbury from 1993 to 2005. He won the seat in a by-election in May 1993 caused by the death of Ju ...
of the
Liberal Democrats with a large
swing of 28.4%, and well over twice as many votes as the Conservative candidate. As with the overwhelming majority of UK by-elections, turnout was lower than at the general election, falling from 83% to 71%.
Background
The by-election in Newbury was the first by-election of the 1992–1997 parliament, and the first in a string of by-election losses for 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 ...
who were in their fourth consecutive term of office. Until 1993 the seat had been held by a Conservative MP since 1924.
Candidates
Many independent candidates, or candidates from newly formed or minor parties stood in the by-election, with three candidates standing on an anti-
Maastricht Treaty
The Treaty on European Union, commonly known as the Maastricht Treaty, is the foundation treaty of the European Union (EU). Concluded in 1992 between the then-twelve member states of the European Communities, it announced "a new stage in the ...
platform
Platform may refer to:
Technology
* Computing platform, a framework on which applications may be run
* Platform game, a genre of video games
* Car platform, a set of components shared by several vehicle models
* Weapons platform, a system or ...
. Andrew Bannon, a
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 from
Slough
Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...
stood as a ''Conservative Candidate'' in protest at a
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 standing as a ''Labour Candidate'' in the
1992 general election in
Slough
Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...
.
All candidates needed since 1985 to win at least 5% of the total votes to retain their
deposit, which they must pay to stand for election. Every candidate apart from David Rendel and Julian Davidson lost their deposit, including Labour's Steve Billcliffe.
The by-election achieved a record of 19 candidates, beating the previous high of seventeen at the
1984 Chesterfield by-election. It remained the longest
ballot
A ballot is a device used to cast votes in an election and may be found as a piece of paper or a small ball used in secret voting. It was originally a small ball (see blackballing) used to record decisions made by voters in Italy around the 16t ...
paper in any Parliamentary election until the
2008 Haltemprice and Howden by-election
The 2008 Haltemprice and Howden by-election was a by-election held in the United Kingdom on 10 July 2008 to elect a new Member of Parliament (MP) for constituency of Haltemprice and Howden. The by-election was triggered by the surprise and contr ...
.
Results
Rendel served as MP until the
2005 general election, when he was defeated by the Conservative candidate
Richard Benyon
Richard Henry Ronald Benyon, Baron Benyon (born 21 October 1960) is a British politician who has served as Minister of State for Biosecurity, Marine and Rural Affairs since 2022. A member of the Conservative Party, he was Member of Parliament ...
.
General election result, 1992
This is the result of the
1992 general election in Newbury.
Aftermath
The loss of Newbury marked the beginning of a disastrous run of by-election defeats for
John Major
Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997, and as Member of Parliament ...
's Conservatives, as they went on to lose a further seven contests in seats they had held prior to the
next general election in 1997.
The result was later described by ''
The Herald'' as "a major embarrassment for the Major Government", while
Tim Farron
Timothy James Farron (born 27 May 1970) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Liberal Democrats from 2015 to 2017. He has also served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Westmorland and Lonsdale since 2005, before which he worked ...
would remember it as being "inspirational" for the Liberal Democrats.
See also
*
Lists of United Kingdom by-elections
The list of by-elections in the United Kingdom is divided chronologically by parliament:
Parliament of the United Kingdom
* List of United Kingdom by-elections (1801–1806)
* List of United Kingdom by-elections (1806–1818)
* List of United Kin ...
References
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Newbury By-Election, 1993
1993 elections in the United Kingdom
1993 in England
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 ...
By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Berkshire constituencies
1990s in Berkshire