1967 Walthamstow West by-election
{{Short description|Historical election in the UK}}{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2012}}
The Walthamstow West by-election of 21 September 1967 was held after the death of Labour Member of Parliament (MP) Ted Redhead on 15 April of that year. The seat was gained by the Conservative Party by just 62 votes.
Results
{{Election box begin | title=Walthamstow West, 1967{{cite web|url=http://by-elections.co.uk/67.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120329035318/http://by-elections.co.uk/67.html|title=1967 By Election Results|archive-date=2012-03-29|url-status=dead|access-date=2015-08-20}}}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Conservative Party (UK)
|candidate = Frederick Silvester
|votes = 6,652 | percentage = 37.05 | change = +12.27
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Labour Party (UK)
|candidate = Eric Deakins
|votes = 6,590 | percentage = 36.71 | change = -24.46
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Liberal Party (UK)
|candidate = Margaret Wingfield
|votes = 4,105 | percentage = 22.87 | change = +8.81
}}
{{Election box candidate|
|party = Anti-Common Market
|candidate = Oliver Smedley
|votes = 542 | percentage = 3.02 | change = New
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Independent (politician)
|candidate = Robin Allen
|votes = 63 | percentage = 0.35 | change = New
}}
{{Election box majority|
|votes = 62
|percentage = 0.34
|change = N/A
}}
{{Election box turnout|
|votes = 17,952
|percentage =
|change =
}}
{{Election box gain with party link|
|winner = Conservative Party (UK)
|loser = Labour Party (UK)
|swing =
}}
{{Election box end}}
The election was held on the same day as the Cambridge by-election, where the Conservatives also gained a seat held by Labour, however at Cambridge the swing between the two parties was 8.6% compared with the 18.4% swing to the Conservatives at Walthamstow West. The Walthamstow West result was also significant as Labour had held the seat since 1929, and it had formerly been the seat of Labour Prime Minister Clement Attlee.{{cite news |title=Conservatives big double in by-elections |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=GGgVawPscysC&dat=19670922&printsec=frontpage&hl=en |accessdate=12 July 2020 |work=The Herald|location=Glasgow |date=22 September 1967 |page=1}} An editorial in The Glasgow Herald the day after the result said that while the Cambridge result was "always expected" the Conservative victory in Walthamstow "almost defies belief" given that the Labour Party had held the seat during its crushing national defeat in 1931.{{cite news |title=Discontent |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=GGgVawPscysC&dat=19670922&printsec=frontpage&hl=en |accessdate=12 July 2020 |work=The Herald|location=Glasgow |date=22 September 1967 |page=8}}
References
{{reflist}}
{{By-elections to the 44th UK Parliament}}