1909 Edinburgh East by-election

The 1909 Edinburgh East by-election was a Parliamentary by-election held on 16 April 1909.^[1] The constituency returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system.

Vacancy

Sir George McCrae had been Liberal MP for the seat of Edinburgh East since the 1899 Edinburgh East by-election. He resigned from the House of Commons to take up a position in Scottish government service, accepting the appointment of Vice-President of the Scottish Local Government Board.^[2]

Electoral history

The seat had been won by a Liberal at every election since it was created in 1885. They easily held the seat at the last election, with an increased majority;

General election 1906: Edinburgh East^[3]^[4]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	George McCrae	6,606	73.1	14.6
	Liberal Unionist	Rankin Dawson	2,432	26.9	−14.6
Majority			4,174	46.2	29.2
Turnout			9,038	78.1	8.9
Registered electors			11,572
	Liberal hold		Swing	14.6

Candidates

The local Liberal Association selected 60-year-old James Gibson to defend the seat. He had been Lord Provost of Edinburgh since 1906. The Conservatives selected 29-year-old Patrick Ford as their candidate.

Campaign

Polling Day was fixed for 16 April 1909.

Result

The Liberal majority was only a ninth of their 1906 result. This was generally ascribed to the loss of the Roman Catholic vote because of the failure to settle the education question.;^[5]

Gibson

Edinburgh East by-election, 1909^[4]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	James Gibson	4,527	52.7	−20.4
	Liberal Unionist	Patrick Ford	4,069	47.3	20.4
Majority			458	5.4	−40.8
Turnout			8,596	73.4	−4.7
Registered electors			11,710
	Liberal hold		Swing	−20.4

Aftermath

General election January 1910: Edinburgh East
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	James Gibson	6,760	61.3	8.6
	Liberal Unionist	Patrick Ford	4,273	38.7	−8.6
Majority			2,487	22.6	17.2
Turnout			11,033	88.0	14.6
Registered electors			12,544
	Liberal hold		Swing	8.6

References

^ Craig, F.W.S. (1987). Chronology of British Parliamentary By-elections 1833–1987. Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 103.
^ Edmund Burke, The Annual Register of World Events: A Review of the Year; Longmans, Green, 1910
^ Whitaker's Almanack, 1907
^ ^a ^b Craig, FWS, ed. (1974). British Parliamentary Election Results: 1885-1918. London: Macmillan Press. ISBN 9781349022984.
^ A Liberal Chronicle: Journals and Papers of J.A. Pease

[1] Craig, F.W.S. (1987). Chronology of British Parliamentary By-elections 1833–1987. Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 103.

[2] Edmund Burke, The Annual Register of World Events: A Review of the Year; Longmans, Green, 1910

[3] Whitaker's Almanack, 1907

[craig1885-4] Craig, FWS, ed. (1974). British Parliamentary Election Results: 1885-1918. London: Macmillan Press. ISBN 9781349022984.

[5] A Liberal Chronicle: Journals and Papers of J.A. Pease

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