Lewisham (electoral division)

Lewisham
Former electoral division for the Greater London Council
District	London Borough of Lewisham
Population	282,080 (1969 estimate)
Electorate	201,636 (1964) 195,144 (1967) 201,497 (1970)
Area	8,581.2 acres (34.727 km2)
Former electoral division
Created	1965
Abolished	1973
Member(s)	4
Replaced by	Deptford, Lewisham East, Lewisham West

Lewisham was an electoral division for the purposes of elections to the Greater London Council. The constituency elected four councillors for a three-year term in 1964, 1967 and 1970.

History

It was planned to use the same boundaries as the Westminster Parliament constituencies for election of councillors to the Greater London Council (GLC), as had been the practice for elections to the predecessor London County Council, but those that existed in 1965 crossed the Greater London boundary. Until new constituencies could be settled, the 32 London boroughs were used as electoral areas which therefore created a constituency called Lewisham. ^[1]

The electoral division was replaced from 1973 by the single-member electoral divisions of Deptford, Lewisham East, Lewisham West. ^[2]

Elections

The Lewisham constituency was used for the Greater London Council elections in 1964, ^[3] 1967 ^[4] and 1970. ^[5] Four councillors were elected at each election using first-past-the-post voting. ^[6]

1964 election

The first election was held on 9 April 1964, a year before the council came into its powers. The electorate was 201,636 and four Labour Party councillors were elected. With 87,184 people voting, the turnout was 43.2%. The councillors were elected for a three-year term.

1964 Greater London Council election: Lewisham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	David Walter Chalkley	50,103
	Labour	Alec Alan Grant	49,756
	Labour	John Charles Henry	49,373
	Labour	Harold Charles Shearman	48,631
	Conservative	N. W. Farmer	33,614
	Conservative	N. D. Banks	32,809
	Conservative	J. B. W. Holderness	32,461
	Conservative	Mrs. D. E. New	32,199
	Communist	S. P. Bent	4,159
	Christian Independent	F. A. Harvie	2,895
Turnout
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)
	Labour win (new seat)

1967 election

The second election was held on 13 April 1967. The electorate was 195,144 and four Conservative Party councillors were elected. With 82,357 people voting, the turnout was 42.2%. The councillors were elected for a three-year term.

1967 Greater London Council election: Lewisham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Christopher Bland	39,817
	Conservative	Michael John Wheeler	39,684
	Conservative	Arthur James Hichisson	39,070
	Conservative	Frederick Walter Weyer	38,678
	Labour	David Walter Chalkley	35,552
	Labour	Alec Alan Grant	35,469
	Labour	John Charles Henry	35,035
	Labour	Sir Harold Shearman	34,968
	Liberal	J. D. Eagle	4,451
	Liberal	R. P. Grundon	4,344
	Liberal	R. Sizeland	4,143
	Liberal	G. A. H. Kiloh	3,639
	Communist	J. M. Delahoy	2,221
	Communist	H. Barr	2,043
	Union Movement	A. G. Nicholson	1,729
Turnout
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

1970 election

The third election was held on 9 April 1970. The electorate was 201,497 and four Labour Party councillors were elected. With 81,513 people voting, the turnout was 40.4%. The councillors were elected for a three-year term.

1970 Greater London Council election: Lewisham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Charles Henry	40,682
	Labour	Brian Bastin	40,646
	Labour	David Chalkley	40,625
	Labour	Alec Grant	40,422
	Conservative	Arthur James Hichisson	35,943
	Conservative	J. C. Fairhead	35,813
	Conservative	P. T. James	35,646
	Conservative	Michael John Wheeler	35,492
	Homes before Roads	K. P. Brem-Wilson	1,763
	Homes before Roads	F. Davies	1,724
	Homes before Roads	L. F. Hollingsworth	1,580
	Liberal	A. R. P. Ley	1,410
	Homes before Roads	R. Thompson	1,261
	Independent Liberal	C. L. Morris	1,250
	Liberal	D. Ruel-Bentall	1,222
	Communist	M. H. Robinson	1,159
	Liberal	I. S. T. Senior	1,097
	Communist	L. F. Stannard	1,063
	Liberal	C. J. Lazaro	770
	Union Movement	A. J. Andrews	360
	Independent	B. Ward	303
Turnout
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing

References

1. British Information Services (1970). British Record: Political and Economic Notes. To date elections, normally fought on traditional party lines, have been based on the London boroughs, each borough returning two or more councillors; after 1973 there will be single member electoral areas based on parliamentary constituencies.
2. "The Greater London (Electoral Areas) Order 1972" (PDF). legislation.gov.uk. 20 June 1972. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
3. "General Election of Greater London Councillors" (PDF). 9 April 1964. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 August 2013. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
4. "General Election of Greater London Councillors" (PDF). 13 April 1967. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 August 2013. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
5. "Greater London Council Election" (PDF). 9 April 1970. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 August 2013. Retrieved 25 December 2023.
6. Boothroyd, David. "Greater London Council Election results: Lewisham". United Kingdom Election Results. Archived from the original on 24 March 2016. Retrieved 25 December 2023.