1942 Cardiff East by-election
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Constituency of Cardiff East | ||||||||||||||||
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Turnout | 33.1% ( 40.0%) | |||||||||||||||
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The 1942 Cardiff East by-election was a parliamentary
Vacancy
The by-election was caused by the appointment of the sitting National Conservative MP, Owen Temple-Morris, as a county court judge.
Candidates
Government
The by-election took place during the Second World War. Under an agreement between the Conservative,
Grigg had been a career
Underlining his lack of party political credentials, Grigg stated that he intended to stand in the by-election as a National candidate without other party label. He said that as a civil servant of 30 years standing it would be unfair to the service to adopt a party affiliation and he said he had none. He declared that he wanted to be the party of national unity at a time of national emergency and that the war had to be won as a nation not by any party ticket.[6]
Independent Labour Party
In accordance with the wartime electoral truce, the Labour and Liberal parties declined to stand candidates but Grigg was opposed by a representative of the
Issues
The main election issue was the prosecution and conduct of the war. Grigg declared his support for the armed forces and his plans to improve equipment and training and he promised to continue to develop new weapons and devices by involving scientists in the war effort. He urged the press to cease attacks on the military leadership and the performance of the armed forces, accusing those parts of the media who did so of doing
In his election address, Brockway stated that the policy of a socialist Britain would not be to negotiate with Hitler but to appeal to the peoples of Europe to overthrow him.
Outcome
Grigg was returned comfortably with 75% of the poll, albeit on the relatively low turnout of 33%. The by-elections of the Second World War showed evidence of the role of the war in initiating a leftward swing in British politics
Result and votes
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
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National | James Grigg | 10,030 | 75.2 | N/A | |
Ind. Labour Party | Fenner Brockway
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3,311 | 24.8 | N/A | |
Majority | 6,719 | 50.4 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 13,341 | 33.1 | -40.0 | ||
Registered electors | 40,254 | ||||
National gain from Conservative | Swing |
See also
References
- ^ P Addison, By-Elections of the Second World War in C Cook & J Ramsden (eds.) By-elections in British Politics; UCL Press, 1997 p130
- ^ The Times, 21 March 1942 p4
- ^ H F Oxbury, Sir Percy James Grigg in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online, 2004–09
- ^ The Times, 14 March 1942 p2
- ^ The Times, 15 April 1942 p4
- ^ The Times, 30 March 1942 p2
- ^ a b The Times, 6 April 1942 p2
- ^ David Howell, Archibald Fenner Brockway in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online, 2004–09
- ^ ISBN 0-900178-019. Various pages
- ^ The Times, 9 April 1942 p2
- ^ The Times, 13 April 1942 p2
- ^ The Times, 11 April 1942 p2
- ^ a b The Times, 10 April 1942 p2
- ^ Addison, By-Elections of the Second World War in C Cook & J Ramsden (eds.) p148
- ^ P Addison, The Road to 1945: British Politics and the Second World War; Quartet Books, 1977 p249