The City of London by-election, 1940 was a by-election

By-election

A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....

 held on 5 February 1940 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 City of London

City of London (UK Parliament constituency)

The City of London was a United Kingdom Parliamentary constituency. It was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1950.-Boundaries and boundary...

, which covered the "Square Mile

City of London

The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...

" which was the United Kingdom's

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 traditional financial district.

The by-election was caused by the resignation of one of the City's two Conservative Party

Conservative 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...

 Members 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,...

 (MPs) Sir Alan Garrett Anderson

Alan Garrett Anderson

Sir Alan Garrett Anderson GBE DL was a British civil servant and shipowner.- Early life and career:Anderson was born in 1877 to James George Skelton Anderson and Elizabeth Garrett Anderson. Anderson's father was a shipping magnate who merged the family shipping business, Anderson, Anderson & Co.,...

, who had held the seat since a by-election in 1935.

In accordance with the war-time

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 electoral pact, neither the Labour

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...

 nor the Liberal

Liberal Party (UK)

The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...

 parties fielded a candidate. The Conservatives did not defend the seat either, instead supporting the National candidate, Sir Andrew Rae Duncan, who had been brought in from industry to serve as President of the Board of Trade.

There being no other candidates, Duncan was returned unopposed.

Election results

See also

• List of United Kingdom by-elections
• City of London constituency
  City of London (UK Parliament constituency)
  The City of London was a United Kingdom Parliamentary constituency. It was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1950.-Boundaries and boundary...
  
  
• City of London by-election, 1922
  City of London by-election, 1922
  The City of London by-election, 1922 was a parliamentary by-election held on 19 May 1922 for the British House of Commons constituency of City of London, which covered the "Square Mile" which was the United Kingdom's traditional financial district....
  
  
• City of London by-election, 1924
  City of London by-election, 1924
  The City of London by-election, 1924 was a parliamentary by-election held on 1 February 1924 for the British House of Commons constituency of City of London, which covered the "Square Mile" which was the United Kingdom's traditional financial district....
  
  
• City of London by-election, 1935
• City of London by-election, 1938
  City of London by-election, 1938
  The City of London by-election, 1938 was a by-election held on 6 April 1938 for the British House of Commons constituency of City of London, which covered the "Square Mile" which was the United Kingdom's traditional financial district....
  
  
• City of London by-election, 1945