The Newmarket 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 on 2 January 1903 to fill a vacancy in the United Kingdom House of Commons for the Eastern or Newmarket Division

Newmarket (UK Parliament constituency)

Newmarket is a former United Kingdom Parliamentary constituency. It was created upon the splitting up of the three member Cambridgeshire constituency into three single member divisions in 1885. The seat was abolished in 1918.-Boundaries:...

 of Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...

.

The vacancy occurred with the sudden death of the sitting Conservative

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...

 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,...

, Colonel Harry McCalmont

Harry McCalmont

Colonel Harry Leslie Blundell McCalmont was a British army officer, race-horse owner, yachtsman and Conservative party politician....

 on 8 December 1902. McCalmont had been MP for Newmarket since 1895

United Kingdom general election, 1895

The United Kingdom general election of 1895 was held from 13 July - 7 August 1895. It was won by the Conservatives led by Lord Salisbury who formed an alliance with the Liberal Unionist Party and had a large majority over the Liberals, led by Lord Rosebery...

. At the previous election, in 1900

United Kingdom general election, 1900

-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1900*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...

, he had been returned with a majority of 1,077 votes.

The candidates and campaign

Nominations for the election were made on 26 December 1902. There were two candidates: Leonard Brassey

Henry Brassey, 1st Baron Brassey of Apethorpe

Henry Leonard Campbell Brassey, 1st Baron Brassey of Apethorpe DL , known as Sir Henry Brassey, 1st Baronet, from 1922 to 1938, was a British Conservative politician.-Biography:...

 for the Conservatives, and Charles Day Rose

Charles Day Rose

Sir Charles Day Rose, 1st Baronet was a British-Canadian businessman, race horse breeder, yachtsman and Liberal politician.Born in Montreal, he was the second son of Sir John Rose, 1st Baronet...

 for the Liberals

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...

. Rose had also contested the seat in 1900. Both candidates were involved in the horse racing industry, the major employer in and around the town of Newmarket.

An important factor in the election was the religious beliefs of the candidates. The Church Association

Church Association

The Church Association was an English evangelical Anglican organisation, founded in 1865.It was particularly active in opposition to Anglo-Catholicism, Ritualism and the Oxford Movement.Founded in 1865 by Richard P...

, an evangelical Protestant organisation, interrogated both of the men. Rose stated that he strenuously supported Protestant principles and opposed any legislation that would undermine the ascendency of Protestantism. This satisfied the Association, and was probably responsible for a large number of Evangelical Christian voters switching allegiance from the Conservatives to the Liberals.

Polling and results

The election took place on Friday 2 January 1903. The poll was heavy and motor cars were widely used to bring voters to the polls.

The results of the election were announced on Saturday 3 January at Cambridge Shire Hall. Rose managed to win the seat for the Liberals by a majority of 507 votes.

Rose held the seat at the ensuing election in 1906

United Kingdom general election, 1906

-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1906*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...

, was defeated in January 1910, and regained the seat December of the same year. He served as Newmarket's MP until his death in 1913.

Brassey subsequently became a member of the Commons in as MP for North Northamptonshire

North Northamptonshire (UK Parliament constituency)

North Northamptonshire was a county constituency in Northamptonshire, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- Boundaries :...

 from 1910–1918, and Peterborough

Peterborough (UK Parliament constituency)

Peterborough is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, formally styled The Honourable the Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Parliament assembled. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past...

from 1918 - 1929.