1904 Ayr Burghs by-election

UK parliamentary by-election April 2022 1904 Ayr Burghs by-election presidential United Kingdom Ayr Burghs (UK Parliament constituency)#Elections in the 1900s 1900 Ayr Burghs (UK Parliament constituency)#Elections in the 1900s 1906 29 January 1904 Dobbie 85px Liberal Party (UK) 3,221 50.3% Younger 85px Conservative Party (UK) 3,177 49.7% 250px MP Subsequent MP Charles Orr-Ewing Conservative Party (UK) George Younger Conservative Party (UK) The 1904 Ayr Burghs by-election was a Parliamentary by-election held on 30 January 1904.Craig F.W.S. 1987 Chronology of British Parliamentary By-elections 1833–1987 Chichester Parliamentary Research Services 98 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. The constituency included the Ayrshire burghs of Ayr and Irvine and the Argyllshire burghs of Campbeltown, Inverary and Oban. Vacancy Charles Orr-Ewing had been Unionist MP for the seat of Ayr Burghs since the 1895 general election. He died of heart failure on 24 December 1903 at the age of 43. Electoral history The seat had been Unionist since they gained it in 1895. They easily held the seat at the last election, with an increased majority: General election January 1900British parliamentary election results 1885-1918 by Craig Conservative Party (UK) Charles Orr-Ewing 3,101 55.3 +2.4 Liberal Party (UK) Edmond Charles Browne 2,511 44.7 -2.4 590 10.6 +4.8 5,612 82.3 -6.6 Conservative Party (UK) Liberal Party (UK) +2.4 Candidates The local Unionist Association selected 53-year-old George Younger as their candidate to defend the seat. He was educated at Edinburgh Academy. In 1897, he became chairman of George Younger and Son, the family brewing business.Who Was Who The local Liberal Association selected 42-year-old Joseph Dobbie as their candidate to gain the seat. He was educated at the Ayr Academy and the University of Edinburgh and was in favour of social reform. Campaign Polling day was fixed for 29 January 1904, 36 days after the previous MP died. The most prominent issue of the day was the campaign that leading Unionist, Joseph Chamberlain was running to get his government to introduce protectionist trade measures. His Tariff Reform League made a habit of taking their message to each by-election that occurred. However, the Unionist candidate, George Younger, was a committed supporter of Free Trade rather than Tariff Reform. The league nevertheless set up operations in the constituency to promote the issue which made the Unionist message in the campaign confusing. Younger, unhappy with their presence, got the Unionist Association Chairman to contact Unionist HQ in London to complain. As a result, the Tariff Reform League ceased campaigning and left the constituency.The Liberal Magazine (1905). Result The Liberals gained the seat from the Unionists: Ayr Burghs by-election, 1904 Liberal Party (UK) Joseph Dobbie 3,221 50.3 +5.6 Conservative Party (UK) George Younger 3,177 49.7 -5.6 44 0.6 N/A 6,398 88.4 +6.1 Liberal Party (UK) Conservative Party (UK) +5.6 The Unionist supporting Spectator magazine concluded that "Whichever way we look at the election, it is impossible to dial cover any evidence of Scotland's conversion to Protection."The Spectator, 6 February 1904 Aftermath At the following general election the Unionists re-gained the seat. The result was: General election January 1906 Conservative Party (UK) George Younger 3,766 51.8 +2.1 Liberal Party (UK) Joseph Dobbie 3,505 48.2 -2.1 261 3.6 N/A 7,271 90.5 +2.1 Conservative Party (UK) Liberal Party (UK) +2.1 References Category:1904 in Scotland Category:1904 elections in the United Kingdom Ayr Burghs 1904 Category:By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Scottish constituencies Category:January 1904 in the United Kingdom Category:Politics of Ayrshire