1963 Kinross and Western Perthshire by-election
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The first past the post .Triggered by death of incumbent | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The Kinross and Western Perthshire by-election of 7 November 1963 was a by-election to the House of Commons. It was unique among by-elections since 1918 in that one of the candidates was the sitting Prime Minister, Alec Douglas-Home; he was nominated for the constituency after disclaiming a peerage, as he felt he needed to be a member of the Commons rather than the House of Lords during his premiership. Douglas-Home won the election.
Candidates
The by-election was caused when
On 11 September, the Executive of Kinross and West Perthshire
However, the emergence of the Earl of Home as the new Leader of the Conservative Party and his appointment as Prime Minister on 19 October led to a sudden requirement to find him a seat in the House of Commons. Douglas-Home's Scottish ancestry made him look with particular interest at Kinross and West Perthshire; speculation earlier in the week had already linked him with it. On Sunday 20 October, Younger announced his offer to withdraw in favour of Home, an offer which was graciously accepted. Younger was later selected for Ayr, which he represented from 1964 to 1992. On 23 October, Home executed an instrument of disclaimer under the Peerage Act 1963, becoming Sir Alec Douglas-Home. The new session of Parliament was delayed to await the outcome of the by-election.
The Labour Party chose Andrew Forrester, a 25-year-old schoolteacher from Glasgow who was Chairman of Scotstoun Young Socialists. The Liberal Party nominated Alistair Duncan Millar, a son of James Duncan Millar who farmed in Perthshire. The Scottish National Party leader Arthur Donaldson, a 62-year-old journalist who had fought Dundee in the 1945 general election, was also nominated.
With a sitting Prime Minister fighting a by-election, interest was high and three additional candidates stood.
On the eve of poll, Willie Rushton announced that he was retiring from the contest, and endorsed Liberal Party candidate Alistair Duncan Millar, who he thought stood the best chance of defeating Douglas-Home.
Result
The result was declared from the County Buildings in Perth, shortly after noon on Friday 8 November. Douglas-Home won with a majority of 9,328, and all but he and the Labour and Liberal candidates forfeited their deposits. He went on to represent the constituency until the October 1974 general election.
Votes
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | Sir Alec Douglas-Home
|
14,147 | 57.4 | −10.8 | |
Liberal | Alistair Duncan Millar | 4,819 | 19.5 | New | |
Labour | Andrew Forrester | 3,752 | 15.2 | −1.6 | |
SNP | Arthur Donaldson | 1,801 | 7.3 | −7.7 | |
Ind. Unionist | Ian Smith | 78 | 0.3 | New | |
Independent | Willie Rushton | 45 | 0.2 | New | |
Ind. Conservative
|
Richard Wort | 23 | 0.1 | New | |
Majority | 9,328 | 37.9 | −13.5 | ||
Turnout | 24,665 | 76.1 | +5.1 | ||
Unionist hold | Swing |
See also
References
- The Glasgow Herald. 28 October 1963.
- ^ "1963 By Election Results". Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
Bibliography
- Times Guide to the House of Commons, London: Times Books, 1964