1957 North Dorset by-election

By-election for the British House of Commons

The 1957 North Dorset by-election was a parliamentary by-election for the British House of Commons constituency of North Dorset on 27 June 1957.

## Vacancy

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The by-election was caused by the death of the sitting Conservative MP, Robert Crouch on 7 May 1957. He had been MP here since gaining the seat in 1950.

## Election history

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North Dorset had been won by the Conservatives at every election since 1950 when they gained the seat from the Liberals. The result at the last general election was as follows;

1955 general election Electorate 44,142 [1] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Conservative | Robert Crouch | 18,906  | 52.1  |
| Liberal | Michael Portman | 11,747  | 32.4  |
| Labour | Herbert J. Dutfield  | 5,633  | 15.5  | +7.5
Majority | 7,159  | 19.7  |
Turnout | 36,286  | 82.2  |
| Conservative hold | Swing |  |

## Candidates

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The Conservatives selected Lt-Col. Richard Glyn. He had first been chosen by the local Conservatives to defend the seat at the 1945 general election, but was defeated by the Liberal candidate Frank Byers. The Liberals selected 34-year-old John Alun Emlyn-Jones as candidate. He had fought the seat of Barry just outside Cardiff in the 1950 general election.[2] He was the son of John Emlyn Emlyn-Jones who had been the Liberal MP here from 1922 to 1924. Labour re-selected H J Dutfield, who had stood here at the last general election. An Independent candidate, H C Wright, intervened.

## Result

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North Dorset by-election, 1957[3] Electorate 45,346  Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Conservative | Richard Glyn | 15,513  | 45.1  | −7.0
| Liberal | John Alun Emlyn-Jones  | 12,411  | 36.1  | +3.7
| Labour | Herbert J. Dutfield  | 6,278  | 18.3  | +2.8
| Independent | H C Wright  | 170  | 0.5  | New
Majority | 3,102  | 9.0  | −10.7
Turnout | 34,372  | 75.8  | −6.4
| Conservative hold | Swing | -5.4  |

## Aftermath

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The result at the following general election;

General election 1959: North Dorset Electorate 46,844  Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Conservative | Richard Glyn | 20,255  | 52.7  |
| Liberal | John Alun Emlyn-Jones  | 11,604  | 30.2  |
| Labour | Herbert J. Dutfield  | 6,548  | 17.0  |
Majority | 8,651  | 22.5  |
Turnout | 38,377  | 82.0  |
| Conservative hold | Swing |  |

## References

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* Who's Who: www.ukwhoswho.com
* By-Elections in British Politics by Cook and Ramsden

1. ^ F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1950-1973; Political Reference Publications, Glasgow 1973
2. ^ Who’s Who of 475 Liberal Candidates Fighting the 1950 general election; Liberal Publications Dept. 1950
3. ^ "1957 By Election Results". Archived from the original on 29 March 2012. Retrieved 14 August 2015.

## See also

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* List of United Kingdom by-elections
* United Kingdom by-election records

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« 40th Parliament « By-elections to the 41st Parliament of the United Kingdom » 42nd Parliament »

1955|

* August: Mid Ulster
* December: Gateshead West
* Greenock
* Torquay

1956|

* February: Blaydon
* Leeds North East
* Hereford
* Gainsborough
* Taunton
* March: Walthamstow West
* May: Mid Ulster
* June: Tonbridge
* July: Newport
* September: Chester-le-Street
* November: City of Chester
* December: Melton

1957|

* February: Lewisham North
* Wednesbury
* Carmarthen
* March: Bristol West
* Warwick and Leamington
* Beckenham
* Newcastle-upon-Tyne North
* May: Edinburgh South
* East Ham North
* Hornsey
* June: North Dorset
* September: Gloucester
* October: Ipswich
* November: Leicester South East
* December: Liverpool Garston

1958|

* February: Rochdale
* March: Glasgow Kelvingrove
* Torrington
* May: Islington North
* June: Argyll
* Ealing South
* St Helens
* Weston-super-Mare
* Wigan
* November: Morecambe and Lonsdale
* Chichester
* Pontypool
* East Aberdeenshire
* Shoreditch and Finsbury

1959|

* January: Southend West
* March: Belfast East
* Harrow East
* South West Norfolk
* April: Galloway
* June: Penistone
* Whitehaven

Lists of UK by-elections
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1857–1868
1868–1885
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