The 1946 Ogmore by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 4 June 1946 for the British House of Commons constituency of Ogmore in Wales.
Previous MP
editThe seat had become vacant on when the constituency's Labour Member of Parliament (MP), Edward Williams, had been appointed as High Commissioner to Australia. He had been the constituency's MP since the 1931 Ogmore by-election.
Candidates
editLabour selected John Evans, an official in the South Wales Miners' Federation who had stood unsuccessfully for the party in Montgomeryshire at the 1929 general election.[1]
Plaid Cymru reselected Trefor Richard Morgan, a former coal miner who was working in farming. He had stood in the constituency in 1945, taking only 2,379 votes.[1]
The Conservative Party decided against standing a candidate, a spokesman claiming that there was "not enough time" to do so. The Liberal Party also decided against a candidature and, despite a policy to fight by-elections in promising areas, the Communist Party of Great Britain also opted not to contest.[1]
Campaign
editThe Manchester Guardian observed that Morgan was putting "a great deal of effort" into his campaign, and hoped to attract votes from supporters of the Conservatives, Liberals and Communists. The paper speculated that, although he was likely to save his deposit, he would be likely to receive fewer than 4,000 votes, while Evans might take as many as 28,000.[1]
Result
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | John Evans | 13,632 | 70.6 | −5.8 | |
| Plaid Cymru | Trefor Richard Morgan | 5,685 | 29.4 | +23.8 | |
| Majority | 7,947 | 41.2 | −17.2 | ||
| Turnout | 19,317 | 75.6 | −42.5 | ||
| Registered electors | 57,401 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
See also
editReferences
editFurther reading
edit- Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1969]. British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3rd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
- Leigh Rayment's Peerage Pages
- A Vision Of Britain Through Time (Constituency elector numbers)