Kettering by-election, 1940
Encyclopedia
The Kettering by-election, 1940 was a parliamentary by-election
held on 6 March 1940 for the British House of Commons
constituency
of Kettering
in Northamptonshire
.
Member of Parliament
(MP), John Eastwood
, had resigned his seat when he was appointed as a Metropolitan Police
magistrate. He had been Kettering's MP since the 1931 general election
, when he had defeated the sitting Labour
MP Samuel Perry
.
, an army
officer and son of a prominent barrister of Italian origin.
During World War II
, the parties in the Coalition Government
had agreed not to contest vacancies in seats held by other coalition parties. However, W. Ross, a local steel-worker and Labour Party councilor, wanted to contest the seat. He was disowned by his local Labour Party and by the party's National Executive Committee
, and stood as a "Workers' and Pensioners' Anti-War" candidate.
, Profumo held the seat comfortably, with 73% of the votes. After a successful career in the army (where he rose to the rank of Brigadier and was awarded an OBE
), he was defeated at the 1945 general election
. He returned to Parliament
in 1950
, and rose through the ranks to become Secretary of State for War
in 1960, before his career was destroyed in 1963 by a political scandal which became known as the Profumo Affair
.
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
held on 6 March 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 Kettering
Kettering (UK Parliament constituency)
Kettering is a county constituency in Northamptonshire which returns one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
in Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
.
Previous MP
The seat had become vacant when the constituency's 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), John Eastwood
John Eastwood (politician)
John Francis Eastwood OBE , was a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom.Born in Guildford, Surrey, he was elected at the 1931 general election as Member of Parliament for Kettering in Northamptonshire, defeating the Labour MP Samuel Perry...
, had resigned his seat when he was appointed as a Metropolitan Police
Metropolitan police
Metropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...
magistrate. He had been Kettering's MP since the 1931 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1931
The United Kingdom general election on Tuesday 27 October 1931 was the last in the United Kingdom not held on a Thursday. It was also the last election, and the only one under universal suffrage, where one party received an absolute majority of the votes cast.The 1931 general election was the...
, when he had defeated the sitting 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...
MP Samuel Perry
Samuel Perry
Samuel Frederick Perry , was a Labour Co-operative politician in the United Kingdom. He was the father of the British tennis and table tennis champion Fred Perry....
.
Candidates
The Conservative candidate was John ProfumoJohn Profumo
Brigadier John Dennis Profumo, 5th Baron Profumo CBE , informally known as Jack Profumo , was a British politician. His title, 5th Baron, which he did not use, was Italian. Although Profumo held an increasingly responsible series of political posts in the 1950s, he is best known today for his...
, an army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
officer and son of a prominent barrister of Italian origin.
During World War II
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...
, the parties in the Coalition Government
Coalition Government 1940-1945
Members of the War Cabinet are in bold face.-Source:* D. Butler and G. Butler, Twentieth Century British Political Facts 1900–2000....
had agreed not to contest vacancies in seats held by other coalition parties. However, W. Ross, a local steel-worker and Labour Party councilor, wanted to contest the seat. He was disowned by his local Labour Party and by the party's National Executive Committee
National Executive Committee
The National Executive Committee or NEC is the chief administrative body of the UK Labour Party. Its composition has changed over the years, and includes representatives of affiliated trade unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party and European Parliamentary Labour Party, Constituency Labour Parties,...
, and stood as a "Workers' and Pensioners' Anti-War" candidate.
Result
On a turnout barely half of that at the 1935 general electionUnited Kingdom general election, 1935
The United Kingdom general election held on 14 November 1935 resulted in a large, though reduced, majority for the National Government now led by Conservative Stanley Baldwin. The greatest number of MPs, as before, were Conservative, while the National Liberal vote held steady...
, Profumo held the seat comfortably, with 73% of the votes. After a successful career in the army (where he rose to the rank of Brigadier and was awarded an OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
), he was defeated at the 1945 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1945
The United Kingdom general election of 1945 was a general election held on 5 July 1945, with polls in some constituencies delayed until 12 July and in Nelson and Colne until 19 July, due to local wakes weeks. The results were counted and declared on 26 July, due in part to the time it took to...
. He returned to Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
in 1950
United Kingdom general election, 1950
The 1950 United Kingdom general election was the first general election ever after a full term of a Labour government. Despite polling over one and a half million votes more than the Conservatives, the election, held on 23 February 1950 resulted in Labour receiving a slim majority of just five...
, and rose through the ranks to become Secretary of State for War
Secretary of State for War
The position of Secretary of State for War, commonly called War Secretary, was a British cabinet-level position, first held by Henry Dundas . In 1801 the post became that of Secretary of State for War and the Colonies. The position was re-instated in 1854...
in 1960, before his career was destroyed in 1963 by a political scandal which became known as the Profumo Affair
Profumo Affair
The Profumo Affair was a 1963 British political scandal named after John Profumo, Secretary of State for War. His affair with Christine Keeler, the reputed mistress of an alleged Russian spy, followed by lying in the House of Commons when he was questioned about it, forced the resignation of...
.
Votes
See also
- Kettering constituencyKettering (UK Parliament constituency)Kettering is a county constituency in Northamptonshire which returns one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
- KetteringKetteringKettering is a market town in the Borough of Kettering, Northamptonshire, England. It is situated about from London. Kettering is mainly situated on the west side of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene which meets at Wellingborough...
- List of United Kingdom by-elections
- United Kingdom by-election recordsUnited Kingdom by-election recordsUK by-election records is an annotated list of notable records from UK Parliamentary by-elections. A by-election occurs when a Member of Parliament resigns, dies, or is disqualified or expelled, and an election is held to fill the vacant seat...