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1979 Liverpool Edge Hill by-election

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1979 Liverpool Edge Hill by-election

← Oct. 1974 29 March 1979 1979 →

Constituency of Liverpool Edge Hill
  First party Second party Third party
 
Lab
Con
Candidate David Alton Bob Wareing Nicholas Ward
Party Liberal Labour Conservative
Popular vote 12,945 4,812 1,906
Percentage 64.1% 23.8% 9.4%
Swing Increase36.8% Decrease28.1% Decrease11.3%

MP before election

Arthur Irvine
Labour

Elected MP

David Alton
Liberal

The 1979 Liverpool Edge Hill by-election was a parliamentary by-election held in England on 29 March 1979 to elect a new Member of Parliament (MP) for the UK House of Commons constituency of Liverpool Edge Hill.

Polling in the by-election took place one day after the government of James Callaghan had lost a vote of no confidence in parliament and slightly over a month before the 1979 general election. The seat had become vacant on the death the previous December of the constituency's Labour Party MP Sir Arthur Irvine, who had held the seat since a by-election in 1947.

The result was a gain for the Liberal Party, represented by David Alton. Having made his maiden speech on 3 April, just before the house rose for the election, he was re-elected a few weeks later and from 1983 held the Mossley Hill seat until he stood down from the commons in 1997, 18 years after the by-election.

Result

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Liverpool Edge Hill by-election, 1979[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal David Alton 12,945 64.1 +36.8
Labour Bob Wareing 4,812 23.8 −28.1
Conservative Nicholas Ward 1,906 9.4 −11.3
Law and Order Joan Jonker 337 1.7 New
Socialist Unity Ann Walker 127 0.6 New
Gay Liberal Michael Taylor 40 0.2 New
Democratic Monarchist, Public Safety, White Resident Bill Boaks 32 0.2 New
Majority 8,133 40.3 N/A
Turnout 20,199 20.2 −41.0
Liberal gain from Labour Swing +30.2

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "1979 By Election Results". Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
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