1962 West Lothian by-election

The 1962West Lothian by-election was a UK Parliamentary by-election held for the constituency of West Lothian in Scotland on 14 June 1962, ^[1] following the death of sitting MP, John Taylor. The by-election saw the election of Tam Dalyell, who went on to become a long-standing and controversial MP. Additionally, the Scottish National Party had a surprisingly strong showing—their candidate, William Wolfe, became the party leader for several years. ^[2]

Candidates from the Liberal and Conservative parties both lost their deposits. It was the first deposit lost by the Conservatives in Scotland since 1920.

Result

West Lothian by-election, 1962 ^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Tam Dalyell	21,266	50.82	−9.47
	SNP	William Wolfe	9,750	23.30	New
	Unionist	W. I. Stewart	4,784	11.43	−28.28
	Liberal	D. Bryce	4,537	10.84	New
	Communist	Gordon McLennan	1,511	3.61	New
Majority			11,516	27.52	+6.94
Turnout			41,848
	Labour hold		Swing

References

1. "No election fever in West Lothian. Five sides in the voting pool today". The Glasgow Herald . 14 June 1962. p. 1. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
2. "Veteran nationalist Billy Wolfe dies at the age of 86". 19 March 2010. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
3. "1962 By Election Results". Archived from the original on 5 February 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2015.