1928 Ilford by-election


The Ilford by-election, 1928 was a parliamentary by-election for the British House of Commons constituency of Ilford, London on 23 February 1928.

Vacancy

The by-election was caused by the death of the sitting Unionist MP, Sir Fredric Wise at the age of 57 on 27 January 1928 following a sudden heart attack. He had been MP here since winning the 1920 Ilford by-election.

Election History

The constituency was created for the 1918 general election and had been won by Unionists at every election. The Unionists did not come close to losing the seat as the progressive vote had remained evenly split between Liberal and Labour. The result at the last General Election was

Candidates

Polling Day was set for 23 February 1928, just 27 days after the death of the former Member of Parliament, allowing for a short campaign. This would have assisted the Labour candidate de Gruchy, as unlike the other two candidates who had only just been selected, he had been in place for 12 months.
On 7 February, the King's Speech was read out in parliament, which provided a focus for the issues of the campaign. All three party leaders, Baldwin, Ramsay MacDonald and David Lloyd George sent public letters of support to their own candidates. On 15 February, the former Prime Minister and Liberal Leader H. H. Asquith died.

Result

The Unionists held the seat, but there was a massive 13.6% swing to the Liberals. The Labour vote share remained the same but the party fell to third place.

Aftermath

Hamilton held the seat, defeating Comyns Carr again at the following General Election. The Liberal further reduced the Unionist majority by half;