The 1948 Wigan by-election of 4 March 1948 was held after the death of the incumbent Labour MP, William Foster.
The by-election was contested by four candidates: Ronald Williams (Labour), Harold Dowling (Conservative), Thomas Rowlandson (Communist), and Owen L Roberts (King's Cavalier). Roberts was an ex-RAF Pathfinder observer fighting the election "for the peace and prosperity of the country."[1]
The result was a hold for the Labour Party, with Williams gaining 59.1% of the vote, in spite of a 6.5% swing to the Conservative Party.
Result of the by-election
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Ronald Williams | 28,941 | 59.1 |  9.1
| |
| Conservative | Harold Dowling | 17,466 | 35.6 |  3.8
| |
| Communist | Thomas Rowlandson | 1,647 | 3.7 | New | |
| King's Cavalier | Owen L Roberts | 932 | 1.6 | New | |
| Majority | 11,475 | 23.4 | 12.9
| ||
| Turnout | 48,986 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | 6.5
|
|||
Result of the previous General Election
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | William Foster | 31,392 | 68.2 | 6.9
| |
| Conservative | Evelyn Charles Lacy Hulbert-Powell | 14,666 | 31.8 | 6.9
| |
| Majority | 16,726 | 36.4 | 13.8
| ||
| Turnout | 46,058 | 80.4 | 1.3
| ||
| Labour hold | Swing | 6.9
|
|||
References
edit- ^ Goole News search The Glasgow Herald Archives
- ^ "1948 By Election Results". Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "Politics Resources". Election 1945. Politics Resources. 5 July 1945. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
Further reading
edit- Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1969]. British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3rd edition ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
- Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs