1895 London County Council election
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2022}}
{{short description|Local election in England}}
{{Infobox election
|election_name=1895 London County Council election
|country=United Kingdom
|flag_image=LCC arms 1914.png
|type=parliamentary
|ongoing=no
|party_colour=yes
|previous_election=1892 London County Council election
|previous_year=1892
|next_election=1898 London County Council election
|next_year=1898
|seats_for_election=
|election_date=2 March 1895
|image2=Charles_Thomson_Ritchie_headshot.jpg
|colour2=
|leader2=Charles Ritchie
|leaders_seat2=None
|party2=Moderate (London)
|last_election2=
|seats2=59
|seat_change2={{increase}}23
|popular_vote2=140,310
|percentage2=
|swing2=
|image1=Charles_Harrison.jpg
|colour1=
|leader1=Charles Harrison
|leaders_seat1= Bethnal Green South West
|party1=Progressive Party (London)
|last_election1=
|seats1=59
|seat_change1= {{decrease}}23
|popular_vote1= 134,663
|percentage1=
|swing1=
}}
An election to the County Council of London took place on 2 March 1895. The council was elected by First Past the Post with each elector having two votes in the two-member seats. The Moderates made numerous gains, and tied the Progressive Party in seats on the council.
Campaign
The Progressives campaigned on their record of running the council, arguing that they had achieved far more than the Metropolitan Board of Works had, and also that the various Metropolitan Borough Councils should be unified and their powers given to the London County Council.{{cite news |title=London County Council election |work=The Times |date=20 February 1895}} The Moderates argued that the Progressives had delayed in making improvements, and that measures should be taken to increase home ownership rates, rather than constructing council housing.{{cite news |title=The London County Council election |work=The Times |date=27 February 1895}}
The Earl of Onslow, a prominent figure in the Conservative Party, was expected to stand for the Moderates in Islington South, but he was disqualified as his nomination papers were not received in time.{{cite news |title=Earl Onslow disqualified |work=The Observer |date=24 February 1895}}
Results
The Moderates gained 23 seats from the Progressives, and lost only one seat to them, tying both parties on 59 seats. Although the result was a tie, the Progressives held the majority of aldermanic seats on the council, and thus were able to retain control of it.{{cite news |title=London County Council election |work=The Times |date=5 March 1895}}
The Times argued that the result was worse for Progressives than initially appeared, as they had not only lost seats, but many of their formerly safe seats were now marginal.{{cite news |title=The final official returns |work=The Times |date=5 March 1895}} The Daily Chronicle argued that the poor result for the Progressives was due to apathy among workers, and that their vote had held steady among the middle class. In addition, it blamed the unsuccessful Independent Labour Party and Social Democratic Federation candidates for taking votes away from some Progressive candidates.View of The Daily Chronicle reported in: {{cite news |title=The London County Council election |work=Manchester Guardian |date=4 March 1895}}
| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:right;" style="font-size:95%" | ||
| style="vertical-align:center;" rowspan="2" colspan="2"|Party | style="text-align:center;" colspan="3"|Votes{{cite web|url=http://www.electionscentre.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Twentieth-Century-Local-Election-Results-Volume-3.pdf|title=London County Council Elections 1889 – 1961 |last=Council|access-date=12 May 2019}} | style="text-align:center;" colspan="4"|Seats |
|---|---|---|
| style="text-align: right"
! align=center|Number !! align=center|% !! align=center|Stood{{cite news |title=London County Council election: the nominations |work=The Times |date=23 February 1895}} !! align=center|Seats !! align=center|% | ||
| {{Party name with colour|Progressive Party (London)}}
| align="right" | 134,663 | align="right" | 48.0 | align="right" | 110 | align="right" | 59 | align="right" | 50.0 | ||
| {{Party name with colour|Moderate (London)}}
| align="right" | 140,310 | align="right" | 50.0 | align="right" | 116 | align="right" | 59 | align="right" | 50.0 | ||
| {{Party name with colour|Social Democratic Federation}}
| align="right" | | align="right" | | align="right" | 6 | align="right" | 0 | align="right" | 0.0 | ||
| {{Party name with colour|Independent Labour Party}}
| align="right" | | align="right" | | align="right" | 5 | align="right" | 0 | align="right" | 0.0 | ||
| {{Party name with colour|Independent (politician)}}
| align="right" | | align="right" | | align="right" | 4 | align="right" | 0 | align="right" | 0.0 | ||
| {{Party name with colour|Independent Progressive}}
| align="right" | | align="right" | | align="right" | 3 | align="right" | 0 | align="right" | 0.0 |
References
{{Reflist}}
{{London County Council}}
{{London elections}}
{{United Kingdom local elections, 1895}}
Category:1895 elections in the United Kingdom
London County Council election