“1908 Ashburton by-election”的意思、由来-开放百科全书

词条

1908 Ashburton by-election

释义

Vacancy
History
Candidates
Campaign
Result
Aftermath
References
See also

{{Infobox election
|election_name=1908 Ashburton by-election
|type=presidential
|country=United Kingdom
|previous_election=Ashburton (UK Parliament constituency)#Elections in the 1900s
|previous_year=1906
|next_election=Ashburton (UK Parliament constituency)#Elections in the 1910s
|next_year=Jan. 1910
|election_date=17 January 1908
|candidate1=Bell
|image1=
|party1=Liberal Unionist Party
|popular_vote1=5,191
|percentage1=52.8
|candidate2=Buxton
|image2=
|party2=Liberal Party (UK)
|popular_vote2=4,632
|percentage2=47.2
|map_image=
|map_size=250px
|title=MP
|posttitle=Subsequent MP
|before_election=Harry Trelawney Eve
|before_party=Liberal Party (UK)
|after_election=Charles Buxton
|after_party=Liberal Party (UK)
}}

The Ashburton by-election, 1908 was a by-election held in England on 17 January 1908 to elect a new Member of Parliament (MP) for the British House of Commons constituency of Ashburton in Devon.

Vacancy

The by-election was triggered by the appointment of the sitting Liberal MP Harry Trelawney Eve as a judge.

History

{{Election box begin|title=General Election 1906: Ashburton^[1]
}}{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party=Liberal Party (UK)
|candidate=Harry Eve
|votes=5,079
|percentage=57.3
|change=+2.6
}}{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party=Liberal Unionist Party
|candidate=Ernest Morrison-Bell
|votes=3,790
|percentage=42.7
|change= −2.6
}}{{Election box majority|
|votes=1,289
|percentage=14.6
|change= +5.2
}}{{Election box turnout|
|votes=8,869
|percentage=85.0
|change= +1.1
}}{{Election box registered electors|
|reg. electors = 10,429
}}{{Election box hold with party link|
|winner=Liberal Party (UK)
|swing= +2.6
}}{{Election box end}}

Candidates

The Liberal Unionist candidate Ernest Morrison-Bell, had lost the constituency by 1,283 votes in the previous general election.

Campaign

The Liberal government had introduced the Small Holdings and Allotments Act of 1907 which sought to limit the degree to which fixtures and improvements remained the property of landlords, and to increase the number of small farmers. This new measure was expected to have a strong appeal to voters in rural constituencies like Ashburton.^[2]

^[3]

Result

The result was a victory for the Liberal Unionist candidate Ernest Morrison-Bell.

{{Election box begin|title=Ashburton by-election, 1908
}}{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party=Liberal Unionist Party
|candidate=Ernest Morrison-Bell
|votes=5,191
|percentage=52.8
|change=+10.1
}}{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party=Liberal Party (UK)
|candidate=Charles Buxton
|votes=4,632
|percentage=47.2
|change= −10.1
}}{{Election box majority|
|votes=559
|percentage=5.7
|change=20.2
}}{{Election box turnout|
|votes=9,823
|percentage=89.5
|change=+4.5
}}{{Election box registered electors|
|reg. electors = 10,976
}}{{Election box gain with party link|
|winner=Conservative Party (UK)
|loser=Liberal Party (UK)
|swing=+10.1
}}{{Election box end}}

The loss of the seat came as a surprise to the Liberals, who had expected to retain it. The unsuccessful Liberal Candidate, Charles Roden Buxton, complained that the Liberal government had wrongly been blamed for the increased price of food; Morrison-Bell assured his followers that it had been a great victory for the cause of tariff reform. A crowd of over 10,000 people gathered in the town centre to hear the result, and after it was announced, several fights broke out, with Liberal supporters accusing their opponents of having won through 'beer' and 'bribery'. Morrison-Bell had to be escorted to the Conservative Club by the police, and Emmeline Pankhurst and another supporter of the women's suffrage movement were knocked down and injured in a shop in which they had taken refuge. A crowd later invaded the Conservative Club, causing considerable damage, and the police had to charge with truncheons, leaving several people in need of medical treatment. A number of policemen were injured by stones and one was hospitalised.^[4]

Aftermath

{{Election box begin|
|title=General Election January 1910: Ashburton^[5]
}}{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party=Liberal Party (UK)
|candidate=Charles Buxton
|votes=5,668
|percentage=51.1
|change=+3.9
}}{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party=Liberal Unionist Party
|candidate=Ernest Morrison-Bell
|votes=5,421
|percentage=48.9
|change=-3.9
}}{{Election box majority|
|votes=247
|percentage=2.2
|change=7.8
}}{{Election box turnout|
|votes=
|percentage=92.6
|change=+3.1
}}{{Election box hold with party link|
|winner=Liberal Party (UK)
|swing=+3.9
}}{{Election box end}}

References

1. ^Liberal Year Book, 1907
2. ^By-Elections in British Politics, 1832-1914
3. ^{{cite book|editor1-last=Craig|editor1-first=FWS|title=British Parliamentary Election Results: 1885-1918|date=1974|publisher=Macmillan Press|location=London|isbn=9781349022984}}
4. ^The Times, 20 January 1908
5. ^Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1916