Nuneaton by-election, 1942
Encyclopedia
The Nuneaton by-election, 1942 was a parliamentary by-election
held for the British House of Commons
constituency
of Nuneaton
on 9 March 1942. The seat had become vacant when the Labour
Member of Parliament
Reginald Fletcher
was raised to the peerage as Baron Winster. He had held the seat since the 1935 general election
.
During World War II
, the parties in the war-time coalition government had agreed not contest by-elections where a seat held by any of their parties fell vacant, so the Labour candidate, Frank Bowles
was returned unopposed. He represented the constituency until his resignation
in 1965 to allow the election of the Minister of Technology
Frank Cousins
.
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 Nuneaton
Nuneaton (UK Parliament constituency)
Nuneaton is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.- Pre-2010 :...
on 9 March 1942. The seat had become vacant when 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...
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,...
Reginald Fletcher
Reginald Fletcher, 1st Baron Winster
Reginald Thomas Herbert Fletcher, 1st Baron Winster PC was a British Liberal then Labour politician. He was Minister of Supply under Clement Attlee between 1945 and 1946 and Governor of Cyprus between 1946 and 1949....
was raised to the peerage as Baron Winster. He had held the seat since the 1935 general election
United 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...
.
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 war-time coalition government had agreed not contest by-elections where a seat held by any of their parties fell vacant, so the Labour candidate, Frank Bowles
Frank Bowles, Baron Bowles
Francis George Bowles, Baron Bowles was a British solicitor and politician. A long-serving Member of Parliament , Bowles served briefly as a Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons, but is perhaps best known for agreeing to give up his safe seat to make way for Minister of Technology Frank...
was returned unopposed. He represented the constituency until his resignation
Resignation from the British House of Commons
Members of Parliament sitting in the House of Commons in the United Kingdom are technically forbidden to resign. To circumvent this prohibition, a legal fiction is used...
in 1965 to allow the election of the Minister of Technology
Minister of Technology
The Minister of Technology was a position in the government of the United Kingdom, sometimes abbreviated as "MinTech". The Ministry of Technology was established by the incoming government of Harold Wilson in October 1964 as part of Wilson's ambition to modernise the state for what he perceived to...
Frank Cousins
Frank Cousins
Frank Cousins PC was a British trade union leader and Labour politician.He was born in Bulwell, Nottinghamshire, and became a full-time official in the road transport section of the Transport and General Workers' Union in July 1938...
.
See also
- Nuneaton (UK Parliament constituency)Nuneaton (UK Parliament constituency)Nuneaton is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.- Pre-2010 :...
- NuneatonNuneatonNuneaton is the largest town in the Borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth and in the English county of Warwickshire.Nuneaton is most famous for its associations with the 19th century author George Eliot, who was born on a farm on the Arbury Estate just outside Nuneaton in 1819 and lived in the town for...
- Nuneaton by-election, 1965
- Nuneaton by-election, 1967Nuneaton by-election, 1967The Nuneaton by-election of 16 December 1966 was held after the resignation of Labour MP Frank Cousins:The seat was safe, having been won by Labour at the United Kingdom general election, 1966 by over 11,000 votes-Candidates:...
- List of United Kingdom by-elections