1939 Kincardineshire and Western Aberdeenshire by-election

UK parliamentary by-election December 2023 November 2013 A 1939 parliamentary by-election was held on 30 March 1939 for the British House of Commons constituency of Kincardine and Western Aberdeenshire. Vacancy The Unionist MP for the constituency, Sir Malcolm Barclay-Harvey was appointed by the Prime Minister as Governor of South Australia, whereupon he resigned from the House of Commons on 8 March.http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons/lib/research/briefings/snpc-04731.pdf Appointments to the Chiltern Hundreds and Manor of Northstead Stewardships since 1850 Department of Information Services House of Commons Library 9 June 2009 30 November 2009 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20110206041753/http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons/lib/research/briefings/snpc-04731.pdf 6 February 2011 Electoral history The seat was created in 1918 and thereafter became a Unionist/Liberal marginal. The Labour Party had never fielded a candidate. Barclay-Harvey gained it from the Liberals in 1923, lost it to the Liberals in 1929 and won it back again in 1931. The seat was held at the last election with a reduced majority; thumb|130px|Sir Malcolm Barclay-Harvey General election 1935: Kincardine & Western Aberdeenshire https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=zEZAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=uIgMAAAAIBAJ&pg=3337%2C57198 Kincardine ByElection. Unionist wins seat. Mr Thornton Kemsley on his victory. The Glasgow Herald 1 April 1939 7 6 September 2017Whitaker's Almanack, 1939 Electorate 29,528 Unionist Party (Scotland) Malcolm Barclay-Harvey 12,477 55.9 -5.7 Liberal Party (UK) Arthur Irvine 9,841 44.1 +5.7 2,636 11.8 -11.4 22,318 75.6 -5.0 Unionist Party (Scotland) Candidates Thirty-six-year-old Colin Thornton-Kemsley was chosen as the Unionist candidate to defend the seat. He was the Honorary Treasurer of Essex and Middlesex Provincial Area, National Union of Conservative and Unionist Associations. He was educated at Chigwell School, and Wadham College, Oxford. He was a party member in Epping constituency and had made a name for himself in Conservative Party circles as a Neville Chamberlain loyalist who was central to bringing about a censure of Winston Churchill by the Epping Conservative Association. He had no previous links with Scotland. The Liberal Party challenger was 30-year-old Arthur Irvine, who had fought this seat at the last election. Irvine was educated at Edinburgh Academy and Oriel College, Oxford, where he was president of the Oxford Union in 1932. He became a barrister in 1935, when he was called by Middle Temple, and became secretary to the Lord Chief Justice in 1935. Campaign According to the return of election expenses, the Unionists spent £835 10s 7d on their campaign and the Liberals £652 5s 8d.Aberdeen Journal, 11 May 1939 Result Thornton-Kemsley held the seat with a further reduced majority. 1939 Kincardineshire and West Aberdeenshire by-electionWhitaker's Almanack, 1944 Electorate Unionist Party (Scotland) Colin Thornton-Kemsley 11,111 52.7 -3.2 Liberal Party (UK) Arthur Irvine 9,990 47.3 +3.2 121 5.4 -6.4 21,101 71.4 -4.2 Unionist Party (Scotland) -3.2 Aftermath In the 1945 general election, there was a further small swing to the Liberals but Thornton-Kemsley hung on again against a new Liberal challenger; General election 1945 Electorate 30,901 Unionist Party (Scotland) Colin Thornton-Kemsley 10,932 51.5 -1.2 Liberal Party (UK) John Junor 10,290 48.5 +1.2 642 3.0 -2.4 21,222 68.7 -2.7 Unionist Party (Scotland) -1.2 Irvine left the Liberal Party and joined the Labour Party, being defeated in 1945 at Twickenham. Junor became a well-known journalist, and after standing for the Liberals on a further two occasions he left the party and quickly gravitated towards the reactionary right wing of the Conservative Party."Sir John Junor", The Times, 5 May 1997, p. 23. References Kincardineshire and Western Aberdeenshire by-election Kincardineshire and Western Aberdeenshire by-election Category:1930s elections in Scotland Category:By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Scottish constituencies Category:Politics of Aberdeenshire Category:History of Aberdeenshire Category:20th century in Aberdeenshire Category:March 1930 in the United Kingdom