1948 Wigan by-election

The Wigan by-election of 4 March 1948 was held after the death of the incumbent Labour MP, William Foster.

The by-election was contested by four candidates: Ronald Williams (Labour), Harold Dowling (Conservative), Thomas Rowlandson (Communist), and Owen L Roberts (King's Cavalier). Roberts was an ex-RAF Pathfinder observer fighting the election 'for the peace and prosperity of the country.'[1]

The result was a hold for the Labour Party, with Williams gaining 59.1% of the vote, in spite of a 6.5% swing to the Conservative Party.

Result of the by-election
Wigan by-election, 1948 [2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Ronald Williams 28,941 59.1 Decrease 9.1
Conservative Harold Dowling 17,466 35.6 Increase 3.8
Communist Thomas Rowlandson 1,647 3.7 New
King's Cavalier Owen L Roberts 932 1.6 New
Majority 11,475 23.4 Decrease 12.9
Turnout 48,986
Labour hold Swing Decrease 6.5

Result of the previous General Election
General election 1945: Wigan[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour William Foster 31,392 68.2 Increase 6.9
Conservative Evelyn Charles Lacy Hulbert-Powell 14,666 31.8 Decrease 6.9
Majority 16,726 36.4 Increase 13.8
Turnout 46,058 80.4 Decrease 1.3
Labour hold Swing Increase 6.9

References
  1. Goole News search The Glasgow Herald Archives
  2. "1948 By Election Results". Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  3. "Politics Resources". Election 1945. Politics Resources. 5 July 1945. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 8 November 2011.

Further reading
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