1899 Osgoldcross by-election
The 1899 Osgoldcross by-election was a parliamentary by-election for the British House of Commons constituency of Osgoldcross in the West Riding of Yorkshire held on 5 July 1899.
Vacancy
The by-election was caused by the resignation of the sitting
Candidates
Austin
Following the vote of censure against him Sir John Austin decided to resign his seat and appeal directly to his constituents on the points at issue.[4] He chose to contest the election as a Liberal and was sometimes also referred to in the press as a Radical.[5] However, in view of his breach with the official party Austin is referred to here as an Independent Liberal.
Liberals
The local Liberal Association were divided in loyalty, with some believing Austin’s record required their support. A meeting at
Others
There had been a history of contested elections in Osgoldcross in recent years. In 1885 there had been a Conservative candidate. In 1886 Austin had taken the seat off the sitting Liberal Unionist MP, and in 1895 another Conservative had tried his luck. However this time, perhaps preferring not to intrude on the private grief of the Liberal Party, no other party put forward a candidate to take advantage of the Liberal split.[8]
The result
Sir John Austin retained his seat by a clear and comfortable majority, increasing his majority from 1,065 to 2,925, having obtained well over 50% of the poll. It seems likely that Sir John received many votes from Conservative supporters who had no candidate of their own to vote for [9] and who wanted to discomfort the Liberal Party nationally.
The votes
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Independent Liberal | Sir John Austin | 5,818 | 66.8 | +11.0 | |
Liberal | Charles Henry Roberts
|
2,893 | 33.2 | -22.6 | |
Majority | 2,925 | 33.6 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 8,711 | 62.2 | -7.9 | ||
Independent Liberal gain from Liberal | Swing |
See also
- List of United Kingdom by-elections
- United Kingdom by-election records
References
- ^ The Times, 17 June 1899 p13
- ^ The Times, 30 June 1899 p10
- ^ The Times, 17 June 1899 p13
- ^ The Times, 17 June 1899 p13
- ^ The Times, 7 July 1899 p10
- ^ The Times, 24 June 1899 912
- ^ The Times, 24 June 1899 p12
- ^ The Times, 7 July 1899 p10
- ^ The Times, 7 July 1899 p9
- Conservative Central Office, page 157 (181 in web page)