A by-election was held for the British House of Commons constituency of Vale of Glamorgan on 4 May 1989 following the death of Conservative MP Sir Raymond Gower.
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Constituency of Vale of Glamorgan | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Turnout | 70.7% ( 8.6%) | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Eleven candidates stood, which remains the most in any Welsh by-election.
The result was a Labour gain, the party's first by-election gain of this parliamentary term, which came at a time when it was starting to match and even overtake the Conservative government in the opinion polls, just after the controversial poll tax was announced.
Neil Kinnock believed the result, which was reported as 'a massive victory' for Labour, showed a change in the Labour Party's fortunes, and stated "the tide has turned". The swing of 12.35 was significant as if repeated at the next general election would have resulted in Labour winning power.[1] The result was reported by The Glasgow Herald as being a "humiliation" for both the Social and Liberal Democrats and SDP, the two centre parties which had emerged from the former SDP–Liberal Alliance. In the wake of the result the Social and Liberal Democrats' leader Paddy Ashdown called for SDP members to defect to his party, but this call was not supported by SDP leader David Owen, who instead indicated his party might be prepared to enter into a future coalition government with Labour.[2]
Ultimately the seat was narrowly won back by the Conservatives at the 1992 general election.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | John William Patrick Smith | 23,342 | 48.9 | +14.2 | |
| Conservative | Rod Richards | 17,314 | 36.3 | −10.5 | |
| SLD | Frank Leavers | 2,017 | 4.2 | N/A | |
| Plaid Cymru | John Dixon | 1,672 | 3.5 | +1.7 | |
| SDP | David Keith Davies | 1,098 | 2.3 | N/A | |
| Green | Marilyn Wakefield | 971 | 2.0 | N/A | |
| Protect the Health Service | Christopher Tiarks | 847 | 1.8 | N/A | |
| Monster Raving Loony | Screaming Lord Sutch | 266 | 0.5 | N/A | |
| Independent Welsh Socialist | Eric Roberts | 148 | 0.3 | N/A | |
| Corrective Party | Lindi St Claire | 39 | 0.1 | N/A | |
| Christian Alliance | David Black | 32 | 0.1 | N/A | |
| Majority | 6,028 | 12.6 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 47,746 | 70.7 | −8.6 | ||
| Registered electors | 67,549 | ||||
| Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | −12.4 | |||
References
edit- ^ "Poll shock stuns partying Thatcher". The Sydney Morning Herald. 7 May 1989. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
- ^ "Owen ponders coalition after Labour revival". The Glasgow Herald. 6 May 1989. p. 1. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
- ^ Boothroyd, David. "Results of Byelections in the 1987-92 Parliament". United Kingdom Election Results. Retrieved 1 October 2015.