An election to the

County Council A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. Ireland The county councils created under British rule in 1899 continue to exist in Irela ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

took place on 3 April 1952. The council was elected by

First Past the Post In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...

with each elector having three votes in the three-member seats. The Labour Party made substantial gains and greatly increased its majority.

Campaign

The Labour Party manifesto proposed increased

slum clearance Slum clearance, slum eviction or slum removal is an urban renewal strategy used to transform low income settlements with poor reputation into another type of development or housing. This has long been a strategy for redeveloping urban communities; ...

, new

comprehensive school A comprehensive school typically describes a secondary school for pupils aged approximately 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is res ...

s, and new construction at the

South Bank The South Bank is an entertainment and commercial district in central London, next to the River Thames opposite the City of Westminster. It forms a narrow strip of riverside land within the London Borough of Lambeth (where it adjoins Alber ...

. It targeted Conservative seats in Fulham East, Hammersmith South, Kensington North and Paddington North. 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 ...

hoped to make a small number of gains and take control of the council. It targeted Labour-held seats in

Brixton Brixton is a district in south London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th ce ...

Fulham West Fulham West was a borough constituency based in the London district of Fulham. It was represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 to 1955. At the 1918 general election the previous Fulham cons ...

Islington North Islington North () is a constituency in Greater London represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 1983 by Jeremy Corbyn. He served as Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of Her Majesty's Opposition from 2015 to 2020. Co ...

and St Pancras North. Its manifesto proposed working more closely with the government in building housing, closing civic restaurants, and halting the construction of comprehensive schools. 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 ...

stood only twelve candidates, and hoped to retain its representation in

Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in the East End of London northeast of Charing Cross. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common land, Green, much of which survives today as Bethnal Green Gardens, beside Cambridge Heat ...

. The Conservatives stood only two candidates in the constituency, and suggested that its supporters voted for the Liberal candidate Nicholas Harris, son of retiring Liberal councillor

Percy Harris Percy Harris is the name of: *Percy Harris (lawyer), British barrister *Percy Harris (politician), British politician See also

*Percy Harris Bowers, Anglican priest *Percy Harrison (disambiguation) {{human name disambiguation, Harris, Percy ...

Results

Labour won a significant majority in the election, gaining 27 seats, and increasing their vote share in almost every constituency. The Conservatives had for some years received higher vote shares in council elections than at general elections, but this pattern was reversed. The party was particularly surprised to lose a seat in Holborn and St Pancras South, which had a large

business vote Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

. The Liberal Party lost its only seat on the council, and saw its vote share in Bethnal Green fall to less than half its previous level, although it did still beat the Conservative Party in the constituency. The Communist Party also saw its vote drop severely, although it was able to beat the Conservative Party in its best constituency of

Stepney Stepney is a district in the East End of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The district is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name appl ...

. Turnout in the election was up from 1949, with 41% of possible votes cast. A record number of women were elected, comprising nearly one-third of the total number of members of the council.

References

{{United Kingdom local elections, 1952 1952 elections in the United Kingdom County Council election 1952 English local elections London County Council elections April 1952 events in the United Kingdom