1990 Paisley South by-election

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| <- 1987 | 29 November 1990 | 1992 ->

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Constituency of Paisley South
Turnout| 55.0% 20.3%
|  | First party  | Second party

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|  |
Candidate  | Gordon McMaster | Iain Lawson
Party  | Labour | SNP
Popular vote  | 12,485 | 7,455
Percentage  | 46.1% | 27.5%
Swing  | 10.0% | 13.5%

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| Third party  | Fourth party
|  |
Candidate  | John Workman  | Alan Reid
Party  | Conservative | Liberal Democrats
Popular vote  | 3,627  | 2,660
Percentage  | 13.4%  | 9.8%
Swing  | 1.3%  | 5.3%

* * *

| MP before election

Norman Buchan
Labour

| Subsequent MP

Gordon McMaster
Labour

|

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The 1990 Paisley South by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 29 November 1990 for the UK House of Commons constituency of Paisley South, in the town of Paisley, Scotland.

It was caused by the death of the previous Labour Member of Parliament, Norman Buchan.

As in the by-election in the neighbouring seat of Paisley North held on the same day, the SNP saw a healthy increase in their share of the vote, but not enough to win, and the Labour Party retained the seat, with Gordon McMaster emerging as the victor.

The by-election was the first parliamentary election to take place under the premiership of John Major, who had succeeded Margaret Thatcher as Prime Minister just two days earlier. Although the change of party leader sparked an almost instant upswing in Conservative support (which had been declining for the previous 18 months largely due to the poll tax) and ultimately saw them win the 1992 general election with their highest number of votes on record, the Tories failed to take advantage of this by-election; polling at a mere 13.4% and failing to alter the political climate in a traditional Labour stronghold.

## Result

[edit]

Paisley South by-election, 1990[1]

Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%
| Labour | Gordon McMaster | 12,485  | 46.1  | −10.0
| SNP | Iain Lawson  | 7,455  | 27.5  | +13.5
| Conservative | John Workman  | 3,627  | 13.4  | −1.3
| Liberal Democrats | Alan Reid | 2,660  | 9.8  | −5.3
| Scottish Green | Lizbeth Collie  | 835  | 3.1  | New
Majority  | 5,030  | 18.6  | −22.5
Turnout | 27,062  | 55.0  | −20.3
| Labour hold | Swing | -11.8  |

## See also

[edit]

* Paisley South (UK Parliament constituency)
* 1997 Paisley South by-election
* 1990 Paisley North by-election
* Elections in Scotland
* Lists of United Kingdom by-elections

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Boothroyd, David. "Results of Byelections in the 1987-92 Parliament". United Kingdom Election Results. Retrieved 1 October 2015.

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