Kilmarnock (UK Parliament constituency)

Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1918–1983

For the 1832–1918 constituency, see Kilmarnock Burghs (UK Parliament constituency).

Kilmarnock

Former county constituency
for the House of Commons
Subdivisions of Scotland| Ayrshire
Major settlements| Kilmarnock
1918–1983
Seats| One
Created from| Kilmarnock Burghs, Ayrshire North and Ayrshire South
Replaced by| Kilmarnock and Loudoun

Kilmarnock was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 to 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

The constituency included the area of the former parliamentary burgh of Kilmarnock. The parliamentary burgh had been, previously, a component of the Kilmarnock Burghs constituency.

Prominent Members for this seat included long-serving Scottish Secretary Willie Ross, and senior judge Craigie Mason Aitchison.

## Boundaries

[edit]

### 1918 to 1950

[edit]

The constituency was created by the Representation of the People Act 1918 as one of four constituencies covering the county of Ayr and the county of Bute. Of the other three constituencies, two were county constituencies: Bute and Northern Ayrshire and South Ayrshire. The third, Ayr Burghs, was a district of burghs constituency. All four constituencies were entirely within the boundaries of the two counties.

The Kilmarnock constituency consisted of "The county district of Kilmarnock, inclusive of all burghs situated therein except insofar as included in the Ayr District of Burghs."

The counties of Ayr and Bute had been covered, previously, by the five constituencies of Ayr Burghs, Buteshire, Kilmarnock Burghs, North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire. Two of these, Ayr Burghs and Kilmarnock Burghs, had included areas (parliamentary burghs) outside the two counties.

### 1950 to 1974

[edit]

Constituency boundaries were redrawn in 1950, creating five constituencies to cover the counties of Ayr and Bute. Ayr Burghs was abolished and two new county constituencies, Ayr and Central Ayrshire, were created. Part of the Kilmarnock constituency was transferred to the new Central Ayrshire constituency.

### 1974 to 1975

[edit]

In 1974, the boundary between the Kilmarnock and Ayrshire Central constituencies was redrawn to enlarge Kilmarnock.

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (June 2008)

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### 1975 to 1983

[edit]

In 1975, under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, local government counties were abolished and replaced by a system of regions and districts. The areas of the counties of Ayr and Bute were merged into the Strathclyde region and, thus, the Kilmarnock constituency became one of a number covering the region. Eight years were to elapse before new constituency boundaries took account of new local government boundaries.

In 1983 the Kilmarnock constituency was merged into the Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency.

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (June 2008)

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## Members of Parliament

[edit]

Election | Member[1] | Party

|
|

| 1918 | Alexander Shaw | Coalition Liberal
| 1922 | Liberal
| 1923 | Robert Climie | Labour
| 1924 | Charles MacAndrew | Scottish Unionist Party
| 1929 | Robert Climie | Labour
| 1929 by-election | Craigie Aitchison | Labour
| 1931 | National Labour
| 1933 by-election | Kenneth Lindsay | National Labour
| 1945 | Clarice Shaw | Labour
| 1946 by-election | Willie Ross | Labour
| 1979 | William McKelvey | Labour
1983 | constituency abolished: see Kilmarnock and Loudoun

## Election results

[edit]

### Elections in the 1910s

[edit]

Alexander Shaw General election 1918: Kilmarnock [2] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

C | Liberal | Alexander Shaw | 13,568 | 67.1 |
| Co-operative Party | Peter Malcolm  | 6,652  | 32.9  |
Majority | 6,916  | 34.2  |
Turnout | 20,220  | 62.6  |
Registered electors | 32,298  |  |
| Liberal win (new seat)
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

### Elections in the 1920s

[edit]

General election 1922: Kilmarnock [3] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Liberal | Alexander Shaw | 12,991  | 54.7  | −12.4
| Labour | Robert Climie | 10,752  | 45.3  | N/A
Majority | 2,239  | 9.4  | −24.8
Turnout | 23,743  | 71.5  | +8.9
Registered electors | 33,210  |  |
| Liberal hold | Swing | −12.4  |
Sir Donald Maclean General election 1923: Kilmarnock [4] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Robert Climie | 10,992  | 43.2  | −2.1
| Liberal | Donald Maclean | 8,185  | 32.1  | −22.6
| Unionist | Alexander Morrice Mackay  | 6,298  | 24.7  | New
Majority | 2,807  | 11.1  | N/A
Turnout | 25,475  | 75.7  | +4.2
Registered electors | 33,652  |  |
| Labour gain from Liberal | Swing | +10.3  |
General election 1924: Kilmarnock [5] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Unionist | Charles MacAndrew | 14,237  | 52.2  | +27.5
| Labour | Robert Climie | 13,054  | 47.8  | +4.6
Majority | 1,183  | 4.4  | N/A
Turnout | 27,291  | 79.5  | +3.8
Registered electors | 34,315  |  |
| Unionist gain from Labour | Swing | +11.5  |
General election 1929: Kilmarnock  Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Robert Climie | 17,368  | 48.2  | +0.4
| Unionist | Charles MacAndrew | 10,939  | 30.4  | −21.8
| Liberal | James Rutherford | 7,700  | 21.4  | New
Majority | 6,429  | 17.8  | N/A
Turnout | 36,007  | 77.8  | −1.7
Registered electors | 46,310  |  |
| Labour gain from Unionist | Swing | +11.1  |
1929 Kilmarnock by-election Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Craigie Aitchison | 18,465  | 55.6  | +7.4
| Unionist | Charles MacAndrew | 13,270  | 40.0  | +9.6
| Communist | Isabel Brown | 1,448  | 4.4  | New
Majority | 5,195  | 15.6  | −2.2
Turnout | 33,183  | 71.7  | −6.1
Registered electors | 46,310  |  |
| Labour hold | Swing | −1.1  |

### Elections in the 1930s

[edit]

General election 1931: Kilmarnock  Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| National Labour | Craigie Aitchison | 21,803  | 59.6  | +4.0
| Ind. Labour Party | John Pollock | 14,767  | 40.4  | N/A
Majority | 7,036  | 19.2  | +3.6
Turnout | 36,580  | 79.5  | +7.8
| National Labour gain from Labour | Swing | N/A |
1933 Kilmarnock by-election Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| National Labour | Kenneth Lindsay | 12,577  | 34.8  | −24.8
| Labour | James Barr | 9,924  | 27.4  | N/A
| Ind. Labour Party | John Pollock | 7,575  | 20.9  | −19.5
| Scottish Party | Alexander MacEwen | 6,098  | 16.9  | New
Majority | 2,653  | 7.4  | −11.8
Turnout | 36,174  | 77.3  | −2.2
| National Labour hold | Swing |  |
General election 1935: Kilmarnock [6] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| National Labour | Kenneth Lindsay | 19,115  | 50.9  | +16.1
| Labour | James Crawford | 12,558  | 33.4  | +6.0
| Ind. Labour Party | John Pollock | 3,582  | 9.5  | −11.4
| SNP | T. W. Campbell  | 2,346  | 6.2  | −10.7
Majority | 6,557  | 17.5  | +10.1
Turnout | 37,601  | 78.8  | +1.5
| National Labour hold | Swing | +5.0  |

### Elections in the 1940s

[edit]

General election 1945: Kilmarnock  Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Clarice Shaw | 23,837  | 59.4  | +26.0
| Unionist | George E.O. Walker  | 16,300  | 40.6  | New
Majority | 7,537  | 18.8  | N/A
Turnout | 40,137  | 76.1  | −2.7
| Labour gain from National Labour | Swing | N/A |
1946 Kilmarnock by-election Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Willie Ross | 22,456  | 59.7  | +0.3
| Unionist | George E.O. Walker  | 12,239  | 32.5  | −8.1
| SNP | George Dott  | 2,932  | 7.8  | New
Majority | 10,217  | 27.2  | +8.4
Turnout | 37,627  | 68.4  | −7.7
| Labour hold | Swing | +4.2  |

### Elections in the 1950s

[edit]

General election 1950: Kilmarnock[7] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Willie Ross | 22,412  | 56.58  | −2.80
| Unionist | McInnes Shaw | 14,179  | 35.80  | −4.80
| Liberal | John Gibson Thomson  | 2,157  | 5.45  | New
| Communist | Isabel Brown | 860  | 2.17  | New
Majority | 8,233  | 20.79  | +2.0
Turnout | 39,608  | 86.15  | +10.1
Registered electors | 45,974  |  |
| Labour hold | Swing | +1.0  |
General election 1951: Kilmarnock[8] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Willie Ross | 24,664  | 60.72  | +4.14
| Unionist | Norman Macleod Glen  | 15,955  | 39.28  | +3.48
Majority | 8,709  | 21.44  | +0.65
Turnout | 40,619  | 86.66  | +0.51
Registered electors | 46,869  |  |
| Labour hold | Swing | +0.33  |
General election 1955: Kilmarnock[9] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Willie Ross | 23,324  | 60.89  | +0.17
| Unionist | John Sutherland[10] | 14,983  | 39.11  | −0.17
Majority | 8,341  | 21.78  | +0.34
Turnout | 38,307  | 81.07  | −5.59
Registered electors | 47,254  |  |
| Labour hold | Swing | +0.17  |
General election 1959: Kilmarnock[11] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Willie Ross | 25,379  | 62.72  | +1.83
| Unionist | R Ian McNaught  | 15,087  | 37.28  | −1.83
Majority | 10,292  | 25.44  | +3.66
Turnout | 40,466  | 82.43  | +1.36
Registered electors | 49,090  |  |
| Labour hold | Swing | +1.83  |

### Elections in the 1960s

[edit]

General election 1964: Kilmarnock[12] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Willie Ross | 25,173  | 62.29  | −0.43
| Unionist | Graham H Webster[13] | 10,796  | 26.71  | −10.57
| Liberal | Ian M Will  | 4,443  | 10.99  | New
Majority | 14,377  | 35.58  | +10.16
Turnout | 40,412  | 82.77  | +0.34
Registered electors | 48,824  |  |
| Labour hold | Swing | +5.04  |
General election 1966: Kilmarnock[14] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Willie Ross | 26,036  | 68.54  | +6.25
| Conservative | Albert McQuarrie | 11,949  | 31.46  | +4.75
Majority | 14,087  | 37.08  | +1.50
Turnout | 37,985  | 79.02  | −3.75
Registered electors | 48,073  |  |
| Labour hold | Swing | +0.75  |

### Elections in the 1970s

[edit]

General election 1970: Kilmarnock[15] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Willie Ross | 24,477  | 59.3  | −9.2
| Conservative | G Law  | 11,476  | 27.8  | −3.6
| SNP | Alistair MacInnes  | 2,836  | 6.9  | New
| Liberal | Archibald James Wight  | 2,459  | 6.0  | New
Majority | 13,001  | 31.52  | −5.6
Turnout | 41,248  | 79.1  | 0.0
| Labour hold | Swing |  |
General election February 1974: Kilmarnock[16][17] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Willie Ross | 23,544  | 47.20  | −12.14
| Conservative | Kenneth Alexander Ross  | 13,817  | 27.70  | −0.12
| SNP | Alistair MacInnes  | 7,644  | 15.32  | +7.44
| Liberal | Archibald James Wight  | 4,878  | 9.78  | +3.82
Majority | 9,727  | 19.50  | −12.02
Turnout | 49,883  | 83.25  | +3.19
| Labour hold | Swing |  |
General election October 1974: Kilmarnock [17][18][19] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | Willie Ross | 22,184  | 45.69  | −1.51
| SNP | Alistair MacInnes  | 14,655  | 30.19  | +14.86
| Conservative | William Adams  | 9,203  | 18.96  | −8.74
| Liberal | Kevin Purcell  | 2,508  | 5.17  | −4.61
Majority | 7,529  | 15.50  | −4.00
Turnout | 48,550  | 80.41  | −2.84
| Labour hold | Swing | -8.18  |
General election 1979: Kilmarnock[17][20] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Labour | William McKelvey | 25,718  | 52.56  | +6.87
| Conservative | John Corbett | 14,251  | 29.12  | +10.17
| SNP | Alistair MacInnes  | 8,963  | 18.32  | −11.87
Majority | 11,467  | 23.44  | +7.93
Turnout | 48,932  | 81.08  | +0.67
| Labour hold | Swing | -1.65  |

## See also

[edit]

* Kilmarnock
* 1929 Kilmarnock by-election
* 1933 Kilmarnock by-election
* 1946 Kilmarnock by-election
* Former United Kingdom Parliament constituencies

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "K" (part 2)
2. ^ Whitaker's Almanack, 1920
3. ^ The Times, 17 November 1922
4. ^ The Times, 8 December 1923
5. ^ Oliver & Boyd's Edinburgh Almanac, 1927
6. ^ Whitaker's Almanack, 1939
7. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1950". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
8. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1951". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
9. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1955". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
10. ^ "Unionist Choice in Kilmarnock - Mr John Sutherland". The Herald. Vol. 171, no. 235\. Glasgow. 2 October 1953. p. 6. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
11. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1959". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
12. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1964". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
13. ^ "Unionist Choice for Kilmarnock - Mr Graham Webster". The Herald. Vol. 181, no. 260\. Glasgow. 26 November 1963. p. 11. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
14. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1966". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
15. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1970". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 29 June 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
16. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results February 1974". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
17. ^ a b c "'Kilmarnock', Feb 1974 - May 1983". ElectionWeb Project. Cognitive Computing Limited. Archived from the original on 3 April 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
18. ^ Whitaker's Almanack, 1977
19. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results October 1974". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
20. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1979". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2016.

* Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1969]. British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3rd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.

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