East Perthshire by-election, 1903 - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The East Perthshire by-election, 1903 was a parliamentary 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 for the 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 of East Perthshire

East Perthshire (UK Parliament constituency)

East Perthshire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 to 1918...

in the County of Perth

Perthshire

Perthshire, officially the County of Perth , is a registration county in central Scotland. It extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south...

on 26 February 1903.

Vacancy

The by-election was caused by the resignation of the sitting 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...

MP, Sir John Kinloch.

Candidates

The Liberals selected Thomas Ryburn Buchanan

Thomas Buchanan (Liberal politician)

Thomas Ryburn Buchanan PC was a Scottish Liberal politician and bibliophile.-Background and education:Buchanan was born in Glasgow and educated at Sherborne School and Balliol College, Oxford...

, a barrister

Barrister

A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...

by profession and a former MP for three different Scottish constituencies.

A meeting of Conservatives

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...

and Liberal Unionists

Liberal Unionist Party

The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington and Joseph Chamberlain, the party formed a political alliance with the Conservative Party in opposition to Irish Home Rule...

took place in Perth

Perth, Scotland

Perth is a town and former city and royal burgh in central Scotland. Located on the banks of the River Tay, it is the administrative centre of Perth and Kinross council area and the historic county town of Perthshire...

on 13 February 1903 to decide whether or not to contest the election. It was reported that the candidate they had invited to stand had declined to do so and in the end they could not find a candidate willing to fight this traditional Liberal seat, which had been held by the Liberal Party at every election since its creation in 1885

United Kingdom general election, 1885

-Seats summary:-See also:*List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1885*Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885–1918*Representation of the People Act 1884*Redistribution of Seats Act 1885-References:...

The result

There being no other candidates putting themselves forward therefore, Buchanan was returned unopposed. He told his supporters that they had 'gained one of the greatest Liberal victories in Scotland, as complete a victory as the largest majority could have given them at the poll'.
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