Monmouth by-election, 1991
Encyclopedia
The Monmouth by-election, 1991 was a by-election
held for the British House of Commons
constituency
of Monmouth
in Wales
on 16 May 1991. It was won by the Labour Party
candidate Huw Edwards
.
Member of Parliament
(MP), Sir John Stradling Thomas
had died at the age of 66 on 29 March 1991. He had held the seat since the 1970 general election
.
. The Labour Party
candidate was 38-year-old Huw Edwards
.
However, he was unseated at the 1992 general election
by his defeated Conservative opponent Roger Evans, who held the seat until Edwards regained it in the Labour landslide at the 1997 general election
.
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
held for the British House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
constituency
United Kingdom constituencies
In the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies:...
of Monmouth
Monmouth (UK Parliament constituency)
Monmouth is a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom . It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post of election...
in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
on 16 May 1991. It was won by the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
candidate Huw Edwards
Huw Edwards (politician)
Huw William Edmund Edwards is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Monmouth over two separate terms....
.
Vacancy
The seat had become vacant when the sitting ConservativeConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP), Sir John Stradling Thomas
John Stradling Thomas
Sir John Stradling Thomas was a Welsh Conservative Party politician.Thomas was educated at Rugby School and the University of London. He served as a councillor on Carmarthen Borough Council 1961-64. He was a farmer, company director and broadcaster.Thomas contested Aberavon in 1964 and...
had died at the age of 66 on 29 March 1991. He had held the seat since the 1970 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1970
The United Kingdom general election of 1970 was held on 18 June 1970, and resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, who defeated the Labour Party under Harold Wilson. The election also saw the Liberal Party and its new leader Jeremy Thorpe lose half their...
.
Candidates
The Conservative candidate was 44-year-old Roger EvansRoger Kenneth Evans
Roger Kenneth Evans is a British Conservative politician.Evans was elected Member of Parliament for Monmouth in 1992, winning the seat back from Labour's Huw Edwards who had defeated Evans in by-election the previous year. However, at the 1997 general election, Edwards retook the seat.Evans...
. The Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
candidate was 38-year-old Huw Edwards
Huw Edwards (politician)
Huw William Edmund Edwards is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Monmouth over two separate terms....
.
Result
The result was a victory for the Labour candidate, Huw Edwards, who took the seat on a swing of 12.6%.However, he was unseated at the 1992 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
by his defeated Conservative opponent Roger Evans, who held the seat until Edwards regained it in the Labour landslide at the 1997 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
.
Votes
See also
- Monmouth (UK Parliament constituency)Monmouth (UK Parliament constituency)Monmouth is a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom . It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post of election...
- MonmouthMonmouthMonmouth is a town in southeast Wales and traditional county town of the historic county of Monmouthshire. It is situated close to the border with England, where the River Monnow meets the River Wye with bridges over both....
- Monmouth by-election, 1934Monmouth by-election, 1934The Monmouth by-election, 1934 was a by-election held for the British House of Commons constituency of Monmouth in Wales on 14 June 1934. It was won by the Conservative candidate John Arthur Herbert.- Vacancy :...
- Monmouth by-election, 1939Monmouth by-election, 1939The Monmouth by-election, 1939 was a by-election held for the British House of Commons constituency of Monmouth in Wales on 25 July 1939. The by-election was won by the Conservative candidate Leslie Pym.- Vacancy :...
- Monmouth by-election, 1945Monmouth by-election, 1945The Monmouth by-election, 1945 was a by-election held for the British House of Commons constituency of Monmouth in Wales on 30 October 1945...
- List of United Kingdom by-elections