1921 Louth by-election

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1921 Louth by-election
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg
  1918 22 September 1921 1922  
  Margaret Wintringham.jpg
Candidate Wintringham HutchingsGeorge
Party Liberal Unionist Labour
Popular vote8,3867,6953,873
Percentage42.2%38.3%19.5%

MP before election

Thomas Wintringham
Liberal

Subsequent MP

Margaret Wintringham
Liberal

The 1921 Louth by-election was a by-election held on 22 September 1921 for the British House of Commons constituency of Louth in Lincolnshire.

Contents

Vacancy

The seat had become vacant following the death of the Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) Thomas Wintringham on 8 August 1921. He had been elected at the by-election in 1920.

Electoral history

The result at the last election was;

T. Wintringham 1921 Thomas Wintringham.jpg
T. Wintringham
1920 Louth by-election [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Thomas Wintringham 9,859 57.3 +11.8
C Unionist Christopher Hatton Turnor 7,35442.711.8
Majority2,50514.6N/A
Turnout 17,21363.1+2.8
Liberal gain from Unionist Swing +11.8
Cindicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

Candidates

Campaign

Polling Day was set for 22 September 1921, 45 days after the death of the former MP, allowing for a long campaign. Despite rumours the contrary, on 13 September nominations closed to confirm that the election would be a three-way contest. [4]

Hutchings received the official endorsement of the Coalition Government.

Result

Wintringham held the seat that her husband had gained for the Liberals in a by-election the year before.

Mrs. Wintringham 1921 Margaret Wintringham.jpg
Mrs. Wintringham
1921 Louth by-election [5]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Margaret Wintringham 8,386 42.2 15.1
Unionist Alan Hutchings7,69538.34.4
Labour James L. George3,87319.5New
Majority7913.910.7
Turnout 19,95472.1+9.0
Liberal hold Swing

Wintringham become only the second woman to take her seat in the House of Commons, and the first female Liberal MP.

Aftermath

Wintringham was re-elected at the 1922 general election:

1922 general election [6]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Margaret Wintringham 11,609 52.0 +6.5
Unionist Alan Hutchings10,72648.0−6.5
Majority8834.0−5.0
Turnout 22,33578.5+18.2
Liberal hold Swing

See also

References

  1. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918–1949, FWS Craig
  2. ‘HUTCHINGS, Sir Alan’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2007; online edn, Oxford University Press, December 2012; online edn, November 2012 accessed 4 Jan 2014
  3. Grantham Journal, 27 August 1921
  4. Grantham Journal, 17 September 1921
  5. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918–1949, FWS Craig
  6. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918–1949, FWS Craig

Sources