1957 Lewisham North by-election

The Lewisham North by-election of 14 February 1957 was held following the death of Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) Sir Austin Hudson, 1st Baronet the previous year. In a defeat for the Conservative government, the seat was gained by the Labour Party.

Candidates

The Conservative Party chose Norman Farmer as their candidate for the seat, which had been held by the party since its creation in 1950.

The Labour Party candidate was Niall MacDermot, the son of an Irish barrister. Himself a successful lawyer, he had only joined the party the previous year after fearing that his involvement in an earlier manslaughter case would preclude any political ambitions. MacDermot's mentor within the party, Elwyn Jones, persuaded him to run for election.[1]

Leslie Greene ran as an "independent loyalist" candidate.[2] Although an independent she was actively supported by the right-wing pressure group the League of Empire Loyalists.[3] Greene, the group's organising secretary, had gained notoriety the previous year when she interrupted a speech by Anthony Eden, typical of the sort of headline-grabbing stunt favoured by the group at the time.[4]

Result of the previous general election

Results from the previous general election were:[5]

General election 1955: Lewisham North
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Austin Hudson 22,070 53.96 +0.50
Labour ST Williams 18,834 46.04 -0.50
Majority 3,236 7.92 +1.00
Turnout 40,904 77.93 -6.09
Conservative hold Swing

Result of the by-election

The results of the by-election were as follows:

United Kingdom Parliament: Lewisham North by-election 1957[6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Niall MacDermot 18,516 49.50 +3.46
Conservative Norman Farmer 17,406 46.53 -7.43
Independent loyalist Leslie Greene 1,487 3.97 New
Majority 1,110 2.97 N/A
Turnout 37,409
Labour gain from Conservative Swing +5.44

References
  1. Naill MacDermott obituary
  2. RENTS ROW SWINGS THE VOTE video newsreel film
  3. David Boothroyd, The Politico's Guide to the History of British Political Parties, London: Politico's, 2001, p. 143
  4. Martin Durham, Women and Fascism, Routledge, 1998, p. 101
  5. "UK General Election results May 1955". Archived from the original on 2011-08-11. Retrieved 2011-05-06.
  6. "1957 By Election Results". Archived from the original on 2012-03-29. Retrieved 2015-08-14.
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