1932 Dulwich by-election

The 1932 Dulwich by-election was a by-election held on 8 June 1932 for the British House of Commons constituency of Dulwich in South London.

1932 Dulwich by-election

8 June 1932

Candidate Smith Cooke-Taylor Bentwich Party Conservative Liberal Labour Popular vote 12,342 3,998 3,905 Percentage 61.0 19.8 19.3

MP before election Hall Conservative Subsequent MP Smith Conservative

Vacancy

The by-election was triggered by the death of the serving Conservative Party Member of Parliament (MP), Sir Frederick Hall.

Electoral history

The former Conservative member had a large majority and the seat was considered a safe seat for the party. The result of the last election was;

General election 1931: Dulwich

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Frederick Hall	21,752	71.5
	Labour	F. Hughes	4,747	15.6
	Liberal	C. R. Cooke-Taylor	3,924	12.9
Majority			17,005	55.9
Turnout			30,423
	Conservative hold		Swing

Candidates

• The Conservative and National candidate was 48-year-old Bracewell Smith, a member of Holborn Borough Council from 1922, serving as Mayor 1931–32, and he served on the London County Council from 1925 to 1928. Smith made his fortune in property. In particular he was a major hotel investor/owner and who built the Park Lane Hotel in 1920.
• The Labour candidate was 40-year-old Helen Bentwich, a trade unionist. She was a niece of the Home Secretary, Sir Herbert Samuel, and had recently returned from Palestine where her husband, Norman Bentwich, had been Attorney-General.
• The Liberal candidate was 49-year-old Dr Charles Cooke-Taylor, a psychiatrist. In 1910 Cooke-Taylor contested Holborn as a candidate of the Liberal Party. Between 1918 and 1931 he contested the Dulwich seat six times, though he never won.

Campaign

The major issues were the stringent financial policies of the National Government, and for the Liberal candidate, opposition to protectionism.

Result

The result was much as expected, with turnout around two-thirds of what it had been in the previous year's general election. The Conservative candidate's majority was slashed in half, but the Liberal candidate slightly increased his vote, pushing Labour into third place.

Dulwich by-election, 1932 Electorate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Bracewell Smith	12,342	61.0	-10.5
	Liberal	C. R. Cooke-Taylor	3,998	19.8	+6.9
	Labour	Helen Bentwich	3,905	19.3	+3.7
Majority			8,344	41.2	-14.7
Turnout			20,245	43.0
	Conservative hold		Swing

Aftermath

General election 1935: Dulwich Electorate 43,025

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Bracewell Smith	16,870	60.8
	Labour	J V Delahaye	7,142	25.7
	Liberal	C. R. Cooke-Taylor	3,743	13.5
Majority			9,728	35.1
Turnout			27,755
	Conservative hold		Swing

See also

• List of United Kingdom by-elections
• Dulwich constituency

References

• The Times, 9 June 1932
• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs

Specific