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 ...

was held in the

UK Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremac ...

constituency of Newport West in south Wales on 4 April 2019, following the death of Labour Party MP (Member of Parliament) Paul Flynn. Labour nominated the trade unionist

Ruth Jones Ruth Alexandra Elisabeth Jones (born 22 September 1966) is a Welsh actress, comedian, writer and producer. She co-wrote and co-starred in the award-winning BBC sitcom ''Gavin & Stacey'' (2007–2010, 2019). Jones has also appeared in various ...

, who held the seat for the party with 40% of the vote and a reduced majority. 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 ...

candidate Matthew Evans came second with 31% of the vote, followed by Neil Hamilton, the

UKIP The UK Independence Party (UKIP; ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of Parliament and was the largest pa ...

candidate, on 8%. This was the third parliamentary by-election held during the 57th UK Parliament, which was elected at the

2017 general election This national electoral calendar for 2017 lists the national/federal elections held in 2017 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *5 November ...

Background

In October 2018, the sitting MP Paul Flynn indicated his intention to resign his seat in the imminent future following a worsening of his

rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and hands are involv ...

. At the time, Flynn indicated that he would wait for a snap general election in case that allowed him to stand down without triggering a by-election, citing the expense involved in organising and holding one. He died on 17 February 2019 following a "long illness". Newport West has been held by

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 ...

since

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

, when Flynn won the seat from 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 ...

. The constituency is semi-marginal, with Labour majorities not exceeding 10,000 votes except during the electoral landslide of 1997. The

writ of election A writ of election is a writ issued ordering the holding of an election. In Commonwealth countries writs are the usual mechanism by which general elections are called and are issued by the head of state or their representative. In the United S ...

was moved in Parliament on 28 February, scheduling the by-election for 4 April 2019.

Candidates and timetable

Flynn had indicated his intention to stand down at or before the next general election and political parties had begun to select candidates in Newport West for the next general election, including Jonathan Clark (Plaid Cymru), Matthew Evans (Welsh Conservatives), Ruth Jones (Welsh Labour) and

Amelia Womack Amelia Helen Womack (born 12 January 1985) is a British Green Party of England and Wales politician. She served as the party's Deputy Leader from 2014 to 2022. She is a co-chair of the People's Assembly Against Austerity and co-founded Another ...

(Green Party).

selected its Welsh leader Neil Hamilton. The Liberal Democrats selected Ryan Jones. Also standing were Richard Suchorzewski for the

Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party The Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party ( cy, Plaid Diddymu Cynulliad Cymru), or in Wales, simply Abolish, is a registered single issue political party in Wales. It campaigns for the abolition of the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; ), formerly known as th ...

; June Davies for the

Renew Party The Renew Party was a minor centrist political party in the United Kingdom. It was set up in 2017 to provide an alternative for moderate voters in the wake of the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum. The party described its ...

; Ian McLean for the continuing SDP; and candidates for

For Britain The For Britain Movement was a minor far-right political party in the United Kingdom, founded by the anti-Islam and "counter-jihad" activist Anne Marie Waters after she was defeated in the 2017 UK Independence Party leadership election. His ...

and the

Democrats and Veterans The Democrats and Veterans Direct Democracy Party (DVDDP) was a political party in the United Kingdom. It became the 5 Star Direct Democracy Party. The party was founded in 2018 by former UK Independence Party, UKIP member and Gulf War veteran Gav ...

. The new

Brexit Party Reform UK is a Right-wing populism, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. It was founded with support from Nigel Farage in November 2018 as the Brexit Party, advocating hard Euroscepticism and a no-deal Brexit, and was bri ...

said it would not be standing. The recently formed Independent Group also declined to field its own candidate. The election was administered by

Newport City Council Newport City Council () is the governing body for Newport, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. It consists of 51 councillors, who represent the city's 20 wards. The council is currently, and has historically been, held by the Labour Party. ...

, with the statement of persons nominated published on 8 March 2019.

Campaign

Welsh First Minister , insignia = First Minister of Wales logo.png , insigniasize = 120px , insigniacaption = Logo , flag = Flag of Wales.svg , flagsize = 120px , flagborder = yes , flagcaption = Flag of Wales , image = File:Mark Drakeford (cropped).jpg , ...

Mark Drakeford Mark Drakeford (born 19 September 1954) is a Welsh politician serving as First Minister of Wales and Leader of Welsh Labour since 2018. He previously served in the Welsh Government as Cabinet Secretary for Finance from 2016 to 2018 and Minist ...

announced on 12 March that the expected decision on the construction of an

M4 relief road The M4 relief road, also known as M4 Corridor around Newport (M4CaN), was a proposed motorway, south of the city of Newport, South Wales, intended to relieve traffic congestion on the M4 motorway. Originally proposed by the Welsh Office ...

around Newport would be delayed due to the

purdah Pardah or purdah (from Hindi-Urdu , , meaning "curtain") is a religious and social practice of female seclusion prevalent among some Muslim and Hindu communities. It takes two forms: physical segregation of the sexes and the requirement that wom ...

rules that had taken effect during the by-election. Such rules prevented the government from making major policy announcements to avoid unduly influencing an election campaign. The news was strongly criticised by the Conservative candidate. The national backdrop for the by-election was the continued uncertainty over

Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...

during the

Brexit negotiations in 2019 Brexit negotiations in 2019 started in August, after having originally concluded in November 2018 with the release of the withdrawal agreement. Negotiations took place between the United Kingdom and the European Union during 2017 and 2018 for ...

, with the original planned date for leaving the European Union being postponed and the failure of the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

to agree a way forward. The Conservatives were concerned this would adversely affect their vote."Snap election under May would 'annihilate' Tories", By E Malnick & J Maidment. ''The Sunday Telegraph'', p. 1, 31 March 2019

Result

Previous result

Paul Flynn was re-elected to an eighth term of office in the

, with an increased majority of 5,658 (13.0%) over the

candidate.

References

{{Westminster by-elections in Wales 1950–present By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Welsh constituencies Newport West by-election Newport West by-election 2010s elections in Wales Newport West by-election