1920 Basingstoke by-election

UK parliamentary by-election November 2019 1920 Basingstoke by-election United Kingdom by-election Popular Basingstoke (UK Parliament constituency)#Elections in the 1910s 1918 1920 03 31 yes (Polling)1920 04 14 yes (Declaration) Basingstoke (UK Parliament constituency)#Elections in the 1920s 1922 60.0% File:Arthur Holbrook.jpg Arthur Holbrook Unionist Party (UK) Coalition 8,515 44.2% 19.9% File:Harry Verney crop.jpg Harry Verney Liberal Party (UK) 5,393 28.0% New Labour Party (UK) James Round Labour Party (UK) 5,352 27.8% New MP Auckland Geddes Unionist Party (UK) Subsequent MP Arthur Holbrook Unionist Party (UK) The 1920 Basingstoke by-election was a parliamentary by-election for the British House of Commons constituency of Basingstoke on 31 March 1920. Background The by-election was caused by the resignation of the sitting Unionist MP, Auckland Geddes when he was appointed British Ambassador to the United States. He had been MP here since winning the seat in 1917. Electoral history The result at the last general election in 1918 was; thumb|120px|Geddes General election 1918: BasingstokeBritish Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig Unionist Party (UK) Auckland Geddes 11,218 64.1 Independent Labour A. Close 6,277 35.9 4,941 28.2 17,495 55.2 Unionist Party (UK) Candidates The Unionists selected 70-year-old Arthur Holbrook as their candidate to defend the seat. He was a Newspaper proprietor; founder of Southern Daily Mail; Fellow of the Institute of Journalists; President Newspaper Society, 1913–14; Chairman Portsmouth Conservative Association, 1885–98; President Portsmouth Chamber of Commerce, 1907–12; Commanded Royal Army Service Corps, Salisbury Plain District, 1914–19.‘HOLBROOK, Col Sir Arthur (Richard)’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2007; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2012; online edn, Oct 2012 accessed 16 Dec 2013 thumb|120px|Verney Back in 1919, the Liberals had selected 39-year-old Sir Harry Verney as their prospective parliamentary candidate to challenge for the seat at a future election, so he had nearly a year to establish himself. He had stood before as Liberal candidate for Basingstoke, back in 1906. Verney succeeded to a baronetcy in May 1910. In the December general election of the same year he was returned to Parliament for Buckingham, a seat he held until 1918. He served under H. H. Asquith as Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries from 1914 to 1915. The Labour Party selected a new, first timer James Round as their candidate to challenge for the seat. E.T. Judd of the National Farmers' Union put himself forward as a possible candidate. Initially he had sought the Conservative Party nominationEnglish By-elections Since 1918, Edith Adelaide Harrison before becoming the nominee of the Agricultural party. However, he announced his decision not to contest the seat just before nominations closed.Angus Evening Telegraph, 17 Mar 1920 Campaign Polling Day was set for 31 March 1920. On 26 March nominations closed to confirm that the election would be a three-way contest. Holbrook received the official endorsement of the Coalition Government in separate letters from Lloyd George and Bonar Law. Farming was the dominant issue as the seat was mainly agricultural. By the rejection of Judd, the Unionists lost the support of a large section of farmers who threatened either to abstain from voting or to vote Liberal. For the Labour campaign, Round's chief hope lay in the organized farm labourers.English By-elections Since 1918, Edith Adelaide Harrison Result The Unionists held onto the seat with a much reduced majority, while the Liberals won the battle for second place. 1920 Basingstoke by-electionBritish Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig Unionist Party (UK) Arthur Holbrook 8,515 44.2 –19.9 Liberal Party (UK) Harry Verney 5,393 28.0 N/A Labour Party (UK) James Round 5,352 27.8 N/A 3,122 16.2 –12.0 19,260 60.0 +4.8 Unionist Party (UK) –5.9 Aftermath Holbrook defended his seat at the following general election, while Verney moved to contest Skipton. Round did not stand again. References See also List of United Kingdom by-elections United Kingdom by-election records Category:1920 elections in the United Kingdom Category:By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Hampshire constituencies Category:1920 in England Category:Basingstoke Category:20th century in Hampshire Category:March 1920 in the United Kingdom