Richmond (Yorks) by-election, 1989

A by-election was held in the Richmond (North Yorkshire, England) constituency of the United Kingdom Parliament on 23 February 1989. It followed the resignation of the sitting Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) Leon Brittan on 31 December 1988, to allow him to take up the position of Vice-President of the European Commission.

The Conservative Party retained the seat, with future party leader William Hague the winner. However, this has been attributed in part to the decision by the remnants of the Social Democratic Party (the part that objected to the merger with the Liberal Party the previous year) to contest the election Fact|date=July 2008as well as the newly-formed Social and Liberal Democrats (who subsequently renamed themselves the Liberal Democrats). The SDP candidate, local farmer Mike Potter, finished second (with 16,909 votes, 2,634 behind Hague), while the Social and Liberal Democrats' Barbara Pearce came third with 11,589. Had these votes all been for a single candidate, Hague would have been defeated easily.

The Labour Party achieved only fourth place in the election, their worst position in any English by-election since World War IIFact|date=July 2008. They did not come fourth again until the Bromley and Chislehurst by-election, 2006.

Results

Election box begin
title= Richmond by-election, 1989Election box candidate with party link
party = Conservative Party (UK)
candidate = William Hague
votes = 19,543
percentage = 37.2
change = -24.0Election box candidate with party link
party = Social Democratic Party (UK, 1988)
candidate = Mike Potter
votes = 16,909
percentage = 32.2
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Social and Liberal Democrats
candidate = Barbara Pearce
votes = 11,589
percentage = 22.1
change = -4.9Election box candidate with party link
party = Labour Party (UK)
candidate = Frank Robson
votes = 2,591
percentage = 4.9
change = -6.9Election box candidate with party link
party = Green Party of England and Wales
candidate = Dr. Robert Upshall
votes = 1,473
percentage = 2.8
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Official Monster Raving Loony Party
candidate = David "Lord" Sutch
votes = 167
percentage = 0.3
change = Election box candidate
party = Keep Theakstons British
candidate = Anthony Millns
votes = 113
percentage = 0.2
change = Election box candidate
party = Corrective Party
candidate = Lindi St. Claire
votes = 106
percentage = 0.2
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Liberal Party (UK, 1989)
candidate = Nicholas Watkins
votes = 70
percentage = 0.1
change = Election box majority
votes = 2,634
percentage = 5.0
change = Election box turnout
votes = 52,561
percentage = 64.4
change = Election box hold with party link
winner = Conservative Party (UK)
swing =

ee also

*List of United Kingdom by-elections

References

* [http://www.election.demon.co.uk United Kingdom Election Results]