1929 Holland with Boston by-election

UK parliamentary by-election April 2022 June 2025 1929 Holland with Boston by-election presidential United Kingdom Holland with Boston (UK Parliament constituency)#Elections in the 1920s 1924 Holland with Boston (UK Parliament constituency)#Elections in the 1920s 1929 21 March 1929 Blindell 65px Liberal Party (UK) 13,000 38.1% Blanco White 65px Labour Party (UK) 9,294 27.3% Van den Berg Unionist Party (UK) 8,257 24.2% Dennis Agricultural Party 3,541 10.4% 250px MP Subsequent MP Arthur Wellesley Dean Unionist Party (UK) James Blindell Liberal Party (UK) The 1929 Holland with Boston by-election was a by-election held on 21 March 1929 for the British House of Commons constituency of Holland with Boston in Lincolnshire. The by-election was caused by the death of the Unionist Member of Parliament, Arthur Dean; who had held the seat at the 1924 general election. At that election, Labour came second and the Liberals finished third. Labour had won the seat in 1918, but it had been gained by the Unionists at a by-election just before the 1924 general election. Candidates The new Unionist candidate chosen to defend the seat was Frederick J. Van den Berg. He was born and raised in Johannesburg, before moving to London to practise as a Barrister in 1916. He was standing as a candidate for the first time. The Labour Party candidate was George Blanco White, a lawyer who had stood here last time. The Liberals chose a new candidate in James Blindell, a Grimsby councillor and managing director of a boot manufacturing business. The election was marked by the presence of an Independent Agriculturalist candidate, F. W. Dennis.The Nominations https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001522/19290316/111/0006 6 August 2023 Lincolnshire Standard and Boston Guardian 16 March 1929 Campaign On 1 March, nationally, Liberal leader, David Lloyd George launched the Liberal programme for the upcoming general election, titled We Can Conquer Unemployment. On the eve of poll, the voters of Eddisbury elected a Liberal in place of a Unionist. Result The result was a victory for the Liberal Party candidate James Blindell, 33480 26 March 1929 2084 who overturned a Unionist majority of 4,770 to win by a majority of 3,706 votes. By-election 1929: Holland with Boston Liberal Party (UK) James Blindell 13,000 38.1 +18.4 Labour Party (UK) G. R. Blanco White 9,294 27.3 −5.5 Unionist Party (UK) Frederick J. Van den Berg 8,257 24.2 −23.3 Agricultural Party F.W. Dennis 3,541 10.4 New 3,706 10.8 N/A 34,092 75.6 −0.2 Liberal Party (UK) Unionist Party (UK) +15.9 Aftermath A general election followed in a matter of months. Blindell held the seat for the Liberals, with Van den Berg again standing for the Unionists, finishing second. White did not stand again and the new Labour candidate dropped to third place. The Agricultural Party did not contest the seat. Blindell remained MP until his death in 1937. This was the last by-election gain for the Liberal Party until the 1958 Torrington by-election. See also Holland with Boston constituency 1924 Holland with Boston by-election 1937 Holland with Boston by-election List of United Kingdom by-elections (1918–1931) References Sources Craig F. W. S. F. W. S. Craig British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 1969 3rd 1983 Parliamentary Research Services Chichester 0-900178-06-X h 3 March 2012 Holland with Boston by-election Holland with Boston by-election Holland with Boston by-election Category:By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Lincolnshire constituencies