2006 Bromley and Chislehurst by-election

A by-election was held in the UK parliament constituency of Bromley and Chislehurst in London, following the death of Conservative Member of Parliament Eric Forth on 17 May 2006.[1] The writ for the electing of a new member was issued on 6 June for a polling day of 29 June 2006, the same day as the Blaenau Gwent by-elections.[2] The Conservatives held the seat but with their majority much reduced by the Liberal Democrats.

Bromley and Chislehurst by-election
29 June 2006
Bromley and Chislehurst parliamentary seat
  First party Second party
 
Candidate Bob Neill Ben Abbotts
Party Conservative Liberal Democrats
Popular vote 11,621 10,988
Percentage 40.0% 37.8%
Swing 11.1% 17.5%
  Third party Fourth party
 
Candidate Nigel Farage Rachel Reeves
Party UKIP Labour
Popular vote 2,347 1,925
Percentage 8.1% 6.6%
Swing 4.9% 15.6%
MP before election

Eric Forth
Conservative

 Subsequent MP

Bob Neill
Conservative

Labour was pushed into fourth place by the UK Independence Party. This was only the second time Labour had fallen to fourth place in an English by-election since World War II, the 1989 Richmond (Yorks) by-election being the other occasion. Labour would later drop to 5th place at the 2008 Henley by-election.

Candidates

On 3 June 2006, the local Conservative Association selected Bob Neill, the London Assembly Member for Bexley and Bromley and leader of the Conservative group in the Assembly.[2] The Liberal Democrats selected London Borough of Bromley councillor Ben Abbotts. He is the Liberal Democrat environment spokesman on Bromley Council.[3] Labour chose economist Rachel Reeves, runner-up in 2005, to stand once again.[2] The Green Party selected Ann Garrett as its candidate. Garrett stood as a Green Party candidate in the 2005 general election and the 2004 London Assembly elections.[4] The United Kingdom Independence Party selected Nigel Farage MEP, who represents South East England in the European Parliament. [5] The Official Monster Raving Loony Party selected John Cartwright. [6]

Two independent candidates were validly nominated: John Hemming-Clark and Nick Hadziannis. The English Democrats selected Steven Uncles[7] and candidates from the Money Reform Party and the National Front also ran. The Money Reform Party was a minor political party.

As per the Senior Electoral Officer of Bromley Council, the electorate for this by-election was 72,206, an increase of 1.50% from the 2005 election.

Bromley and Chislehurst by-election, 2006[8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Bob Neill 11,621 40.1 –11.0
Liberal Democrats Ben Abbotts 10,988 37.9 +17.6
UKIP Nigel Farage 2,307 8.0 +4.8
Labour Rachel Reeves 1,925 6.6 –15.6
Green Ann Garrett 811 2.8 –0.4
National Front Paul Winnett 476 1.6 New
Independent John Hemming-Clark 442 1.5 New
English Democrat Steven Uncles 212 0.7 New
Monster Raving Loony John Cartwright 132 0.5 New
Independent Nick Hadziannis 65 0.2 New
Money Reform Anne Belsey 33 0.1 New
Majority 633 2.2 –26.7
Turnout 29,012 40.2 –24.7
Registered electors 71,798
Conservative hold Swing –13.8

2005 general election result
General election 2005: Bromley and Chislehurst[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Eric Forth 23,583 51.1 +1.6
Labour Rachel Reeves 10,241 22.2 –6.4
Liberal Democrats Peter Brooks 9,368 20.3 +1.4
UKIP David Hooper 1,475 3.2 +0.3
Green Ann Garrett 1,470 3.2 New
Majority 13,342 28.9 +8.0
Turnout 46,137 64.8 +0.5
Registered electors 71,137
Conservative hold Swing +4.0

See also

References
  1. "Tributes paid to Tory Eric Forth". BBC News. 18 May 2006. Retrieved 18 May 2006.
  2. "Conservatives nominate Bob Neill for the Bromley and Chislehurst by-election". BBC. 3 June 2006. Retrieved 3 June 2006.
  3. "Lib Dem Choice for the Bromley & Chislehurst by-election". Bromley Liberal Democrats. 30 May 2006. Archived from the original on 1 October 2006. Retrieved 31 May 2006.
  4. "Bromley Greens select candidate for Bromley and Chislehurst by-election". Bromley Green Party. 14 May 2006. Archived from the original on 23 March 2007. Retrieved 22 June 2006.
  5. "UKIP announces Nigel Farage MEP to contest by-election". UKIP Bromley & Chiselhurst. 3 June 2006. Archived from the original on 22 June 2006. Retrieved 3 June 2006.
  6. "BROMLEY & CHISLEHURST - Vote for JOHN CARTWRIGHT, Vote for the Official Monster Raving Loony Party". Croydon Official Monster Raving Loony Party. Archived from the original on 2 March 2006. Retrieved 12 June 2006.
  7. "The English Democrats announce Bromley and Chislehurst Candidate". 8 June 2006. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 12 June 2006.
  8. Boothroyd, David. "Results of Byelections in the 2005-2010 Parliament". United Kingdom Election Results. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  9. "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  10. "Election 2005 | Results | Bromley & Chislehurst". BBC News. 6 May 2005. Retrieved 30 June 2017.
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