 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
The 1984 Stafford by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 3 May 1984 for the British House of Commons constituency of Stafford.
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
The 1984 Stafford by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 3 May 1984 for the British House of Commons constituency of Stafford.
The seat fell vacant when the constituency's Conservative Member of Parliament (MP), Major Sir Hugh Charles Patrick Joseph Fraser MBE (23 January 1918 – 6 March 1984) died. Fraser was then one of Parliament's most senior members, having served over 38 years in the House of Commons.
Fraser was educated at Ampleforth College, Balliol College, Oxford, where he was President of the Oxford Union, and at the Sorbonne. He was commissioned into the Lovat Scouts in 1936 and during World War II saw service in North Africa and Europe; he retired in the 1950s with the rank of Major.
Fraser was elected Member of Parliament for Stone in 1945, later Stafford and Stone following constituency boundary changes, from 1950 until 1983, and then Stafford until his death.
Four candidates were nominated. The list below is set out in descending order of the number of votes received at the by-election.
1. The Conservative candidate was William Nigel Paul Cash (born on 10 May 1940), a solicitor.
After winning the by-election, he served continuously in the House of Commons until standing down in 2024, and was the oldest sitting member between 2019 and 2024. Cash represented Stafford until boundary changes took effect in 1997, and then represented the constituency of Stone until his retirement.
2. The Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate, representing the SDP-Liberal Alliance, was David Joseph Dunn. He was a senior lecturer in International Relations, at the time of the by-election. He was born in 1946 and had contested the seat in the 1983 general election.
3. Michael John David Poulter was the Labour candidate. He worked as a senior probation officer and was born in 1942. He contested Stafford and Stone in 1979 and this constituency in 1983.
4. Christopher David Teasdale was an Independent, using the ballot paper label "Soon to be unemployed".
The Conservative Party held the seat with a reduced majority.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Bill Cash | 18,713 | 40.4 | −10.8 | |
| SDP | David Dunn | 14,733 | 31.8 | +7.1 | |
| Labour | Michael Poulter | 12,677 | 27.4 | +3.7 | |
| Independent | C. Teasdale | 210 | 0.4 | New | |
| Majority | 3,980 | 8.6 | −17.8 | ||
| Turnout | 46,333 | 65.6 | −10.9 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
| Registered electors | 70,635 | ||||
The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of the Labour Party in 1945, with a majority of 144 seats and the first of two consecutive landslide victories.
Upper Bann is a parliamentary constituency in Northern Ireland, which is represented in the United Kingdom House of Commons. The current MP is Carla Lockhart (DUP)
Southampton, Itchen is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Darren Paffey from the Labour Party (UK). Before then, it had been held since 2015 by Royston Smith GM of the Conservative Party, who had announced his retirement from frontline politics in 2023 and did not seek re-election in 2024.
Islington North is a constituency in Greater London established for the 1885 general election. It has been represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 1983 by Jeremy Corbyn, who was Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition from 2015 to 2020. Since 2020, Corbyn has represented the seat as an independent. He was re-elected to Islington North as an independent in the 2024 general election.
Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since the 2024 general election by Chris Ward of the Labour Party.
Stafford is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Leigh Ingham from the Labour Party.
Stone was a constituency in Staffordshire in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. It was represented since its 1997 recreation by Sir Bill Cash, a Conservative. On 9 June 2023, he announced his intention to stand down at the 2024 general election.
Kensington is a former constituency in Greater London which first existed between 1974 and 1997 and was recreated in 2010. It was replaced by the Kensington and Bayswater constituency, first contested at the 2024 general election.
Isle of Ely was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, centred on the Isle of Ely in Cambridgeshire. Until its abolition in 1983, it elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
The 1980 Glasgow Central by-election was a by-election held on 26 June 1980 for the British House of Commons constituency of Glasgow Central, following the death of its sitting MP, Thomas McMillan.
The 1984 South West Surrey by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 3 May 1984 for the British House of Commons constituency of South West Surrey.
The 1985 Brecon and Radnor by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 4 July 1985 for the House of Commons constituency of Brecon and Radnor.
The 1984 Enfield Southgate by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 13 December 1984 for the House of Commons constituency of Enfield Southgate.
The 1986 Knowsley North by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 13 November 1986 for the British House of Commons constituency of Knowsley North.
The 1986 Newcastle-under-Lyme by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 17 July 1986 for the House of Commons constituency of Newcastle-under-Lyme.
The 1985 Tyne Bridge by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 5 December 1985 for the British House of Commons constituency of Tyne Bridge.
The 1984 Cynon Valley by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 3 May 1984 for the British House of Commons constituency of Cynon Valley.
The Glasgow Queen's Park by-election, 1982 was a parliamentary by-election held on 2 December 1982 for the House of Commons constituency of Glasgow Queen's Park.
The 1982 Coatbridge and Airdrie by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 24 June 1982 for the British House of Commons constituency of Coatbridge and Airdrie.
Local elections were held in the United Kingdom in 1984. There was a slight reversal in the Conservative government's fortunes, but the party remained ahead. The projected share of the vote was Conservatives 38%, Labour 37%, Liberal-SDP Alliance 21%.