The Belfast West by-election 1943, was a by-election held on 9 February 1943 for the British House of Commons constituency of Belfast West, in Northern Ireland. The seat had become vacant when the sitting Unionist Member of Parliament (MP) Alexander Browne had died in December 1942. [1]
By-elections, also spelled bye-elections, are used to fill elected offices that have become vacant between general elections.
Belfast West is a parliamentary constituency (seat) in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. It has won by Paul Maskey of Sinn Féin since 2011. In 2017 it ranked the most secure of Northern Ireland's 18 seats by percentage and/or numerical tally of its winning majority, followed by North Down and by North Antrim respectively.
The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. Having gathered support in Northern Ireland during the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries, the party governed Northern Ireland between 1921 and 1972. It was supported by most unionist voters throughout the conflict known as the Troubles, during which time it was often referred to as the Official Unionist Party (OUP). Between 1905 and 1972 its MPs took the Conservative whip at Westminster, considered as part of the Conservative Party.
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The winner was Northern Ireland Labour Party candidate Jack Beattie, a shock result in what had previously been a Unionist safe seat.
The Northern Ireland Labour Party (NILP) was a political party in Northern Ireland which operated from 1924 until 1987.
John Beattie was a Northern Ireland Labour Party (NILP) politician from Northern Ireland. He was a teacher by profession. In 1925, he became a Member of the Northern Ireland House of Commons for Belfast East. He represented Belfast Pottinger from 1929. At one point he served as leader of the NILP.
A safe seat is an electoral district (constituency) in a legislative body which is regarded as fully secure, for either a certain political party, or the incumbent representative personally or a combination of both. In such seats, there is very little chance of a seat changing hands because of the political leanings of the electorate in the constituency concerned and/or the popularity of the incumbent member. The opposite type of seat is a marginal seat.
