2009 Norwich North by-election
{{short description|2009 by-election won by Chloe Smith}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2014}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2014}}
{{Infobox election
| election_name = Norwich North by-election
| type = parliamentary
| country = United Kingdom
| seats_for_election = Norwich North parliamentary seat
| ongoing = no
| previous_election = 2005 United Kingdom general election
| previous_year = 2005
| next_election = 2010 United Kingdom general election
| next_year = 2010
| election_date = 23 July 2009
| turnout = 45.9%
| candidate1 = Chloe Smith
| image1 = 110px
| party1 = Conservative Party (UK)
| popular_vote1 = 13,591
| percentage1 = 39.5%
| swing1 = {{increase}}6.3%
| candidate2 = Chris Ostrowski
| image2 = 110px
| party2 = Labour Party (UK)
| popular_vote2 = 6,243
| percentage2 = 18.2%
| swing2 = {{decrease}}26.7%
| candidate3 = April Pond
| image3 = 110px
| party3 = Liberal Democrats (UK)
| popular_vote3 = 4,803
| percentage3 = 14.0%
| swing3 = {{decrease}}2.2%
| candidate4 = Glenn Tingle
| image4 = 110px
| party4 = UK Independence Party
| popular_vote4 = 4,068
| percentage4 = 11.6%
| swing4 = {{increase}}9.4%
| candidate5 = Rupert Read
| image5 = 110px
| party5 = Green Party of England and Wales
| popular_vote5 = 3,350
| percentage5 = 9.7%
| swing5 = {{increase}}7.0%
| title = MP
| posttitle = Subsequent MP
| before_election = Ian Gibson
| before_party = Labour Party (UK)
| after_election = Chloe Smith
| after_party = Conservative Party (UK)
}}
The 2009 Norwich North by-election was a by-election for the United Kingdom Parliament's House of Commons constituency of Norwich North. The by-election took place due to the resignation of Ian Gibson after being banned from standing as a Labour candidate for the next general election. The writ of election was moved on 30 June 2009 and the by-election took place on 23 July 2009, two days after the start of the summer recess. Unusually for a UK by-election, the counting process was not started until the following day, for a variety of reasons including the high number of postal votes.{{cite web|url=http://www.edp24.co.uk/content/edp24/news/story.aspx?brand=EDPOnline&category=NewsSplash&tBrand=EDPOnline&tCategory=xDefault&itemid=NOED24%20Jul%202009%2008%3A51%3A56%3A570|title=International interest in Norwich vote|author=Dan Grimmer|date=24 July 2009|accessdate=24 July 2009}}
The winner of the by-election was Chloe Smith of the Conservative Party, who at 27 became the youngest member of the House of Commons, known as the Baby of the House.{{cite web|first=Michael|last=Crick|authorlink=Michael Crick|title=A new baby of the House?|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/newsnight/michaelcrick/2009/06/a_new_baby_of_the_house.html|work=Michael Crick's blog|publisher=BBC|date=30 June 2009|accessdate=3 July 2009}}
Boundaries
As boundary changes did not come into effect until the 2010 general election, Norwich North was fought on those boundaries in place at the 2005 general election.
The constituency includes parts of two local government areas, Norwich and Broadland, with the majority of the electorate in Broadland. Nine wards of Broadland (Mile Cross, Crome, Thorpe St Andrew, Sprowston, Old Catton, Catton Grove, Hellesdon, Drayton and Taverham) fall within its boundaries, together with four wards of the City of Norwich (Catton Grove, Crome, Mile Cross, Sewell).
In boundary changes in place for the 2010 general election, Norwich North lost Taverham North, Taverham South, Drayton North and Drayton South to the new Broadland constituency.[http://nds.coi.gov.uk/content/detail.asp?NavigatedFromSearch=True&NewsAreaID=198&ReleaseID=142230&print=true Boundary Commission for England: FINAL RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PARLIAMENTARY CONSTITUENCIES IN THE COUNTY OF NORFOLK]{{Dead link|date=August 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
Candidates
The Labour Party selected Chris Ostrowski, a University of East Anglia graduate, as their candidate on 28 June.{{cite news|url=http://www.edp24.co.uk/content/edp24/news/story.aspx?brand=EDPOnline&category=News&tBrand=EDPOnline&tCategory=xDefault&itemid=NOED28%20Jun%202009%2018%3A31%3A21%3A370|title=Norwich North candidate chosen|last=Brealey|first=Sarah|date=28 June 2009|work=Eastern Daily Press|accessdate=28 June 2009}}
The Conservative Party had already selected Chloe Smith as their candidate for the general election.
The Liberal Democrats selected April Pond, a local businesswoman and former Norwich City Councillor, who was a candidate for South West Norfolk in 2005.{{cite news|url=http://www.eveningnews24.co.uk/content/news/story.aspx?brand=ENOnline&category=News&tBrand=ENOnline&tCategory=News&itemid=NOED22%20Jun%202009%2007%3A49%3A20%3A740|title=Lib-dems name by-election candidate|date=22 June 2009|work=Norwich Evening News|accessdate=22 June 2009}}
The Green Party's candidate at the last general election, Adrian Holmes, announced that he would not be standing,[http://www.edp24.co.uk/content/edp24/news/story.aspx?brand=EDPOnline&category=News&tBrand=EDPOnline&tCategory=xDefault&itemid=NOED10%20Jun%202009%2008%3A40%3A22%3A797 Greens hopeful of Norwich North victory - EDP24] and Norwich City Councillor Rupert Read, the Green Party's lead candidate for the East of England in the European elections, was selected on 24 June.{{cite web|url=http://www.greenparty.org.uk/news/24-06-2009-rupert-read-norwich-north.html|title=Candidate selected for Norwich North|date=24 June 2009|work=www.greenparty.org |publisher=Green Party|accessdate=6 October 2013}} In the European elections the Green Party polled 24.9% across Norwich, more than any other party, while they took 9.6% of the vote in Broadland.Simon Rogers, "[https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/table/2009/jun/09/european-elections-elections-2009 Exactly how well did the BNP do where you live?]", guardian.co.uk
Glenn Tingle stood for the UK Independence Party.{{cite web|url=http://www.ukip.org/content/features/1159-glenn-tingle-our-man-in-norwich-north|title=Glenn Tingle, our man in Norwich North|date=22 June 2009|work=UKIP|accessdate=3 July 2009}}
Other minor parties included Robert West for the British National Party,{{cite web|url=http://bnp.org.uk/2009/06/bnp%e2%80%99s-reverend-west-will-be-candidate-in-norwich-north-by-election/|title=BNP’s Reverend West Will Be Candidate in Norwich North By-Election|work=www.bnp.org.uk |publisher=British National Party |date=24 June 2009|accessdate=6 October 2013 |archivedate=27 June 2009 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090627074436/http://bnp.org.uk/2009/06/bnp%E2%80%99s-reverend-west-will-be-candidate-in-norwich-north-by-election}} who stood as first candidate for the East Midlands Region in the 2009 European Elections, and the Official Monster Raving Loony Party's leader, Howling Laud Hope.{{cite web|url=http://www.omrlp.com/|title=Norwich North bye-elecshun 23rd July|date=5 July 2009|work=Official Monster Raving Loony Party|accessdate=8 July 2009}}{{cite web|url=http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/guide/seat-profiles/norwichnorth|title=Norwich North|work=UK Polling Report|accessdate=3 July 2009}}
Three new parties stood candidates for the first time. The Libertarian Party selected 18-year-old Thomas Burridge as their first parliamentary candidate.{{cite web|url=http://lpuk.org/pages/candidates/thomas-burridge.php|title=Candidate: Thomas Burridge|work=UK Libertarian Party|accessdate=3 July 2009}} NOTA, which stands for "None of the Above", a party set up by former boxer Terry Marsh, announced that Anne Fryatt would stand as their candidate.{{cite news|title=Former boxer's party in by-election|url=http://www.eveningnews24.co.uk/content/news/story.aspx?brand=ENOnline&category=News&tBrand=ENOnline&tCategory=news&itemid=NOED07%20Jul%202009%2015%3A52%3A44%3A493|work=Evening News 24|date=7 July 2009|accessdate=8 July 2009}} Former ambassador Craig Murray stood as an anti-sleaze candidate for the Put an Honest Man into Parliament party, which was registered with the Electoral Commission on 3 July 2009.{{cite web|url=http://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2009/06/i_am_standing_i.html|title=I Am Standing in Norwich North|work=Craig Murray|date=5 June 2009|accessdate=3 July 2009}}{{cite web|url=http://registers.electoralcommission.org.uk/regulatory-issues/regpoliticalparties.cfm?frmGB=1&frmPartyID=896&frmType=partydetail|title=Register of Political Parties: Put an Honest Man into Parliament|work=Electoral Commission|accessdate=8 July 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090713025040/http://registers.electoralcommission.org.uk/regulatory-issues/regpoliticalparties.cfm?frmGB=1&frmPartyID=896&frmType=partydetail|archive-date=13 July 2009|url-status=dead}}
There were also two independent candidates: Bill Holden, who was a candidate in 2005,{{cite web|url=http://norwichnorth.com/index.htm|title=Norwich North: Independent Politics|accessdate=3 July 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714195618/http://norwichnorth.com/index.htm|archive-date=14 July 2011|url-status=dead}} and Peter Baggs.
Ian Gibson announced that he would not be running as an independent candidate. On 26 June he hinted to Newsnight's Michael Crick that he might run as an independent,{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/newsnight/michaelcrick/2009/06/gibson_may_stand_as_independen.html|title=Gibson may stand as independent in Norwich by-election|last=Crick|first=Michael|date=26 June 2009|work=Michael Crick's blog|publisher=BBC|accessdate=30 June 2009}} but he endorsed the Labour candidate three days later.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/newsnight/michaelcrick/2009/06/no_independent_day_for_norwich.html|title=No independent day for Norwich MP|last=Crick|first=Michael|date=29 June 2009|work=Michael Crick's blog|publisher=BBC|accessdate=30 June 2009}}
Broadland District Council published the Statement of Persons Nominated and Notice of Poll, which lists candidates' names, addresses, official descriptions, and names of nominators, on 8 July 2009.{{cite web|url=http://www.broadland.gov.uk/images/Statement_persons_nominated_norwich_north.pdf|title=Parliamentary By-Election: Norwich North Constituency: Statement of Persons Nominated and Notice of Poll|work=Broadland District Council|accessdate=9 July 2009|format=pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090718100127/http://www.broadland.gov.uk/images/Statement_persons_nominated_norwich_north.pdf|archive-date=18 July 2009|url-status=dead}}
Results
Both the UK Independence Party and the Green Party of England and Wales achieved their best results to date in a Parliamentary by-election; UKIP had previously taken a 10.2% share in the 2004 by-election in Hartlepool, and the Greens took 7.4% in the 2008 Haltemprice and Howden by-election. For the Greens this would stand until the 2023 Somerton and Frome by-election when Green Candidate Martin Dimery received 10.2% of the vote.
{{Election box begin |
|title=Norwich North by-election, 23 July 2009{{cite web|url=http://www.election.demon.co.uk/by2005.html|title=Results of Byelections in the 2005-2010 Parliament|last=Boothroyd|first=David|access-date=5 October 2015|website=United Kingdom Election Results|archive-date=27 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151227081306/http://www.election.demon.co.uk/by2005.html|url-status=dead}}{{cite web |title=Norwich North byelection results – live |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/blog/2009/jul/24/byelections-norwich-north-byelection |website=The Guardian |access-date=24 July 2023 |date=24 July 2009}}}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link|
|party = Conservative Party (UK)
|candidate = Chloe Smith
|votes = 13,591
|percentage = 39.5
|change = +6.3
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Labour Party (UK)
|candidate = Chris Ostrowski
|votes = 6,243
|percentage = 18.2
|change = –26.7
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Liberal Democrats (UK)
|candidate = April Pond
|votes = 4,803
|percentage = 14.0
|change = –2.2
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = UK Independence Party
|candidate = Glenn Tingle
|votes = 4,068
|percentage = 11.8
|change = +9.4
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Green Party of England and Wales
|candidate = Rupert Read
|votes = 3,350
|percentage = 9.7
|change = +7.0
}}
{{Election box candidate|
|party = Put an Honest Man into Parliament
|candidate = Craig Murray
|votes = 953
|percentage = 2.8
|change = New
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = British National Party
|candidate = Robert West
|votes = 941
|percentage = 2.7
|change = New
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Independent politician
|candidate = Bill Holden
|votes = 166
|percentage = 0.5
|change = –0.2
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Official Monster Raving Loony Party
|candidate = Alan Hope
|votes = 144
|percentage = 0.4
|change = New
}}
{{Election box candidate|
|party = NOTA
|candidate = Anne Fryatt
|votes = 59
|percentage = 0.2
|change = New
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Libertarian Party (UK)
|candidate = Thomas Burridge
|votes = 36
|percentage = 0.1
|change = New
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Independent politician
|candidate = Peter Baggs
|votes = 23
|percentage = 0.1
|change = New
}}
{{Election box majority|
|votes = 7,348
|percentage = 21.3
|change = N/A
}}
{{Election box turnout|
|votes = 34,377
|change = –15.2
}}
{{Election box gain with party link|
|winner = Conservative Party (UK)
|loser = Labour Party (UK)
|swing = +16.5
}}
{{Election box end}}
2005 result
{{Election box begin |
|title=General election 2005: Norwich North
}}
{{Election box winning candidate with party link|
|party = Labour Party (UK)
|candidate = Ian Gibson
|votes = 21,097
|percentage = 44.9
|change = −2.5
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Conservative Party (UK)
|candidate = James Tumbridge
|votes = 15,638
|percentage = 33.2
|change = −1.4
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Liberal Democrats (UK)
|candidate = Robin Whitmore
|votes = 7,616
|percentage = 16.2
|change = +1.4
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Green Party of England and Wales
|candidate = Adrian Holmes
|votes = 1,252
|percentage = 2.7
|change = +1.0
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = UK Independence Party
|candidate = John Youles
|votes = 1,122
|percentage = 2.4
|change = +1.4
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Independent politician
|candidate = Bill Holden
|votes = 308
|percentage = 0.7
|change = New
}}
{{Election box majority|
|votes = 5,459
|percentage = 11.7
|change =
}}
{{Election box turnout|
|votes = 47,033
|percentage = 61.1
|change = +2.0
}}
{{Election box hold with party link|
|winner = Labour Party (UK)
|swing = −0.6
}}
{{Election box end}}
References
{{Reflist|2}}
{{By-elections to the 54th UK Parliament}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Norwich North By-Election, 2009}}
Category:2009 elections in the United Kingdom
Category:By-elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Norfolk constituencies