The 1947 Normanton by-election was a parliamentary by-election 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 Normanton on 11 February 1947. The seat had become vacant when the

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 Tom Smith had

resigned Resignation is the formal act of leaving or quitting one's office or position. A resignation can occur when a person holding a position gained by election or appointment steps down, but leaving a position upon the expiration of a term, or choos ...

, take up the post of Labour Director of the North-Eastern Divisional Coal Board. Smith had held the seat since the by-election in 1933. The Labour candidate,

George Sylvester George Oscar Sylvester (14 September 1898 – 26 October 1961) was a Labour Party politician in England. He was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for Normanton in West Yorkshire at a by-election in 1947 following the resignation of the Labo ...

, held the seat for his party. 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 was

Enoch Powell John Enoch Powell, (16 June 1912 – 8 February 1998) was a British politician, classical scholar, author, linguist, soldier, philologist, and poet. He served as a Conservative Member of Parliament (1950–1974) and was Minister of Health (1 ...

, the first time he had stood for election, but he was heavily defeated.

References

* * {{By-elections to the 38th UK Parliament Normanton, 1947 Normanton by-election Normanton by-election Normanton by-election Normanton by-election, 1947 Normanton by-election, 1947

See also

References