1979 Liverpool Edge Hill by-election

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1979 Liverpool Edge Hill by-election
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  October 1974 29 March 1979 1979  

Constituency of Liverpool Edge Hill
 First partySecond partyThird party
  DA - Everone knows someone (3x4 crop).jpg
Lab
Con
Candidate David Alton Bob Wareing Nicholas Ward
Party Liberal Labour Conservative
Popular vote12,9454,8121,906
Percentage64.1%23.8%9.4%
SwingIncrease2.svg36.8%Decrease2.svg28.1%Decrease2.svg11.3%

MP before election

Arthur Irvine
Labour

Elected MP

David Alton
Liberal

The 1979 Liverpool Edge Hill by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 29 March 1979 to elect a new Member of Parliament (MP) for the UK House of Commons constituency of Liverpool Edge Hill.

Contents

Polling in the by-election took place one day after the government of James Callaghan had lost a vote of no confidence in parliament and slightly over a month before the 1979 general election. The seat had become vacant in the previous December, upon the death of the constituency's Labour Party MP Sir Arthur Irvine, who had held the seat since a by-election in 1947.

The result was a gain for the Liberal Party, represented by David Alton. Having made his maiden speech on 3 April, just before the House rose for the election, he was re-elected a few weeks later, and from 1983 held the Mossley Hill seat until he stood down from the Commons in 1997, 18 years after the by-election.

Result

Liverpool Edge Hill by-election, 1979 [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal David Alton 12,945 64.1 +36.8
Labour Bob Wareing 4,81223.828.1
Conservative Nicholas Ward1,9069.411.3
Law and OrderJoan Jonker3371.7New
Socialist Unity Ann Walker1270.6New
Gay LiberalMichael Taylor400.2New
Democratic Monarchist, Public Safety, White Resident Bill Boaks 320.2New
Majority 8,13340.3N/A
Turnout 20,19920.2−41.0
Liberal gain from Labour Swing +30.2

See also

References

  1. "1979 By Election Results". Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 17 September 2015.