South West Hertfordshire by-election, 1979
Encyclopedia
The South West Hertfordshire by-election, 1979 was a parliamentary by-election
held on 13 December 1979 for the British House of Commons
constituency
of South West Hertfordshire.
Member of Parliament
(MP), Geoffrey Hugh Dodsworth
(born 7 June 1928) resigned due to ill health. On 24 October 1979 he was appointed Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds, a notional office of profit under the Crown, in order to vacate his Parliamentary seat.
He is an accountant, who had contested Don Valley
in 1959 and Hartlepool
in 1964. He had represented South West Hertfordshire from the February 1974
general election.
1. The Conservative candidate was Richard Lewis Page
(born on 22 February 1941), a mechanical engineer and company director.
He served previously as MP for Workington
, between winning a 1976 by-election
and being defeated at the 1979 general election. Page had also contested Workington in the February 1974 and October 1974 general elections.
After winning this by-election he was a junior minister under John Major
. He stepped down from the House of Commons at the 2005 general election
.
2. Mrs Susan A. Reeves was the Labour candidate. She was a housewife and had worked as a child guidance officer, although by 1983 she was working as a teacher and speech therapist. She was born on 31 March 1943.
She contested the Chelmsford
constituency in the 1979 general election, Stevenage
in 1983 and Suffolk Coastal
in 1987.
3. The Liberal Party candidate was Dane S.C. Clouston, who in 1974 was a mature student and former banker. He was born in September 1938 and had contested the Newbury
seat in the 1970, February 1974 and October 1974 general elections.
4. N.R. Jeskins was the Ecology Party candidate.
5. D.W. Bundy represented the Anti Common Market and Free Trade Party
.
6. N.Q. Ffooks was an Independent, using the ballot paper label "Father Christmas: support Southampton University Rag".
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
held on 13 December 1979 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 South West Hertfordshire.
Previous MP
The seat fell 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), Geoffrey Hugh Dodsworth
Geoffrey Dodsworth
Geoffrey Hugh Dodsworth was a British Conservative Party politician.Educated at St. Peter's School, YorkArticled Clerk January 1946H.M. Forces 1946-48...
(born 7 June 1928) resigned due to ill health. On 24 October 1979 he was appointed Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds, a notional office of profit under the Crown, in order to vacate his Parliamentary seat.
He is an accountant, who had contested Don Valley
Don Valley (UK Parliament constituency)
Don Valley is a parliamentary constituency which returns one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.Created in 1918, Don Valley is a former coal mining area which has elected only Labour MPs since 1922...
in 1959 and Hartlepool
Hartlepool (UK Parliament constituency)
Hartlepool is a borough 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.- Boundaries :...
in 1964. He had represented South West Hertfordshire from the February 1974
United Kingdom general election, February 1974
The United Kingdom's general election of February 1974 was held on the 28th of that month. It was the first of two United Kingdom general elections held that year, and the first election since the Second World War not to produce an overall majority in the House of Commons for the winning party,...
general election.
Candidates
Six candidates were nominated. The list below is set out in descending order of the number of votes received at the by-election.1. The Conservative candidate was Richard Lewis Page
Richard Page
Richard Lewis Page is a former Conservative Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and from December 1979 to 2005.-Early life:He is the son of Victor Charles Page...
(born on 22 February 1941), a mechanical engineer and company director.
He served previously as MP for Workington
Workington (UK Parliament constituency)
Workington is a 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.-Boundaries:...
, between winning a 1976 by-election
Workington by-election, 1976
The Workington by-election, 1976 was a parliamentary by-election held in England for the House of Commons constituency of Workington in Cumbria on 4 November 1976...
and being defeated at the 1979 general election. Page had also contested Workington in the February 1974 and October 1974 general elections.
After winning this by-election he was a junior minister under John Major
John Major
Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
. He stepped down from the House of Commons at the 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
.
2. Mrs Susan A. Reeves was the Labour candidate. She was a housewife and had worked as a child guidance officer, although by 1983 she was working as a teacher and speech therapist. She was born on 31 March 1943.
She contested the Chelmsford
Chelmsford (UK Parliament constituency)
Chelmsford is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. From the 2010 general election it has elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election....
constituency in the 1979 general election, Stevenage
Stevenage (UK Parliament constituency)
Stevenage 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.-Boundaries:...
in 1983 and Suffolk Coastal
Suffolk Coastal (UK Parliament constituency)
Suffolk Coastal 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.This East Anglian constituency was created in 1983....
in 1987.
3. The Liberal Party candidate was Dane S.C. Clouston, who in 1974 was a mature student and former banker. He was born in September 1938 and had contested the Newbury
Newbury (UK Parliament constituency)
Newbury is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It returns one Member of Parliament , elected by the first-past-the-post voting system....
seat in the 1970, February 1974 and October 1974 general elections.
4. N.R. Jeskins was the Ecology Party candidate.
5. D.W. Bundy represented the Anti Common Market and Free Trade Party
Anti Common Market and Free Trade Party
The Anti Common Market and Free Trade Party was a British political party that opposed Britain's membership of the European Union and fought a number of by-elections in the 1970s and 1980s. It was also known as the Free Trade Liberal Party and All Party Anti-Common Market. Among its members were...
.
6. N.Q. Ffooks was an Independent, using the ballot paper label "Father Christmas: support Southampton University Rag".
Votes
See also
- South West Hertfordshire constituency
- 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...