2014 Cowdenbeath by-election

The Cowdenbeath by-election, 2014 was a by-election held for the Scottish Parliament constituency of Cowdenbeath on 23 January 2014, following the death of the constituency's MSP, Helen Eadie, after having been diagnosed with cancer the previous year.[1]

SNP candidate Natalie McGarry (left) introduces herself to a constituent whilst campaigning

Helen Eadie had represented the people of Cowdenbeath since the first election to the Scottish Parliament in 1999, making her one of the few MSPs to have served in the Scottish Parliament continuously since its inception. Prior to the 2011 election the seat was known as Dunfermline East. In the 2011 election Eadie held the seat with a majority of 1,247 votes.

In the by-election, the seat was held by Labour candidate Alex Rowley, increasing Labour's vote share to 56%. There was an 11.25% swing from SNP to Labour. After the election, The SNP dismissed this with their candidate Natalie McGarry stating:

"I heard on the doorsteps from a lot of traditional Labour voters who said: 'Listen, Natalie, I'm not going to vote for you, but I am actually thinking about voting yes in the referendum'.

"So Alex Rowley may be the victor tonight, but I believe the whole of Scotland will celebrate a Yes victory in September."[2]

Result

Cowdenbeath by-election, 2014[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alex Rowley	11,192	55.78	+9.28
	SNP	Natalie McGarry	5,704	28.43	-13.17
	Conservative	Dave Dempsey	1,893	9.44	+2.44
	UKIP	Denise Baykal	610	3.04	N/A
	Liberal Democrats	Jade Holden	425	2.12	-1.78
	The Victims Final Right	Stuart Graham	187	0.93	N/A
	SDA	James Trolland	51	0.25	N/A
Majority			5,488	27.35	+22.45
Turnout			20,062	38.41	-8.49
	Labour hold		Swing

Scottish Parliament Election result, 2011

Scottish Parliament election, 2011: Cowdenbeath

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Helen Eadie	11,926	46.5	+3.4
	SNP	Ian Chisholm	10,679	41.6	+13.1
	Conservative	Belinda Don	1,792	7.0	-7.2
	Liberal Democrats	Keith Legg	997	3.9	-10.3
	Land Party	Mick Heenan	276	1.1	n/a
Majority			1,247	4.9
Turnout			25,670	46.9
	Labour hold		Swing	-4.8%

See also

• Cowdenbeath, and its predecessor, Dunfermline East
• Elections in Scotland
• List of by-elections to the Scottish Parliament

References

1. "Labour MSP Helen Eadie dies, aged 66". BBC News. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
2. "Cowdenbeath by-election: Alex Rowley holds seat for Labour". BBC News. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
3. "Cowdenbeath by-election: Alex Rowley holds seat for Labour", BBC News, 24 January 2014. Retrieved 5 November 2018.

External links