1911 South Somerset by-election

UK parliamentary by-election April 2022 The 1911 South Somerset by-election was a Parliamentary by-election held on 21 November 1911.Craig F.W.S. 1987 Chronology of British Parliamentary By-elections 1833–1987 Chichester Parliamentary Research Services 106 The constituency returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system. Vacancy Sir Edward Strachey the Liberal MP since 1892, was raised to the peerage as Baron Strachie, of Sutton Court in the County of Somerset and accepted ennoblement at start of November 1911 to join the House of Lords.28547 3 November 1911 7952 This is in connection with the Parliament Act 1911, where many Liberal peers were created to overcome their relative deficit, a party having had renewed landslide political support of the people in the elected chamber. Electoral history General election December 1910: South SomersetBritish parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig) Liberal Party (UK) Edward Strachey 4,784 52.6 -0.1 Conservative Party (UK) Aubrey Herbert 4,317 47.4 +0.1 467 5.2 -0.2 9,101 89.5 -3.0 Liberal Party (UK) -0.1 Candidates thumb|120px|right|Henry Vivian Henry Harvey Vivian, born in West Devon, was given the task of defending a seat that had been Liberal since it was created in 1885. He had been Liberal MP for Birkenhead until his defeat at the December 1910 general election. The Conservative candidate was Hon. The Honorable Aubrey Herbert who had stood here unsuccessfully in both 1910 general elections. He was second son of the 4th Earl of Carnarvon, whose family owned a small part of the district, including Pixton Park, West Somerset, one of his permanent main homes. A soldier, diplomat, traveller, and intelligence officer, he was later associated with the Albanian independence movement. He was twice offered that nation's throne. He died in 1923, aged 43. Campaign The campaign seems to have fought mostly on the issue of the National Insurance Act.The Times, 14 November 1911 p10The Times, 16 November 1911 p8 On 13 November, in a portent of things to come, the Unionists won a Liberal seat in a by-election at Oldham. Herbert entered polling day in a mood of great optimism The Times, 21 November 1911 p10 Result Aubrey Herbert gained the seat for the Conservative Party from the Liberal Party. thumb|120px|Aubrey Herbert By-Election 21 November 1911: South SomersetBritish by-election: Unionist returned http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=DOM19111124.2.100 6 October 2012 Dominion 24 November 1911 Conservative Party (UK) Aubrey Herbert 4,878 50.8 +3.4 Liberal Party (UK) Henry Harvey Vivian 4,730 49.2 -3.4 148 1.6 N/A 9,608 91.1 +1.6 Conservative Party (UK) Liberal Party (UK) +3.4 Aftermath A General Election was due to take place by the end of 1915. By the autumn of 1914, the following candidates had been adopted to contest that election. Due to the outbreak of war, the election never took place. Unionist: Aubrey Herbert Liberal: Henry Harvey Vivian For the 1918 elections, the seat grew eastwards, reflecting urban population rise elsewhere since 1885, to become "Yeovil" General election 14 December 1918: Yeovil Unionist Party (UK) *Aubrey Herbert 10,522 50.5 Labour Party (UK) W. T. Kelly 7,589 36.3 New Liberal Party (UK) J. R. Brough 2,743 13.2 2,933 14.2 20,884 Unionist Party (UK) endorsed by the Coalition Government. References 2 Category:By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Somerset constituencies Category:1911 in England Category:1911 elections in the United Kingdom Category:20th century in Somerset Category:November 1911 in the United Kingdom