Ashburton by-election, 1908

The Ashburton by-election, 1908 was a by-election held on 17 January 1908 for the British House of Commons constituency of Ashburton in Devon. The by-election was triggered by the appointment of the sitting Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) Harry Trelawney Eve as a judge.

The result was a victory for the Liberal Unionist candidate Ernest Morrison-Bell, who had lost the constituency by 1,283 votes in the previous general election. The loss of the seat came as a surprise to the Liberals, who had expected to retain it. The unsuccessful Liberal Candidate, Charles Roden Buxton, complained that the Liberal government had wrongly been blamed for the increased price of food; Morrison-Bell assured his followers that it had been a great victory for the cause of tariff reform. A crowd of over 10,000 people gathered in the town centre to hear the result, and after it was announced, several fights broke out, with Liberal supporters accusing their opponents of having won through 'beer' and 'bribery'. Morrison-Bell had to be escorted to the Conservative Club by the police, and Emmeline Pankhurst and another supporter of the women's suffrage movement were knocked down and injured in a shop in which they had taken refuge. A crowd later invaded the Conservative Club, causing considerable damage, and the police had to charge with truncheons, leaving several people in need of medical treatment. A number of policemen were injured by stones and one was hospitalised. ["The Times", 20 January 1908]

Votes

Election box candidate with party link
party = Liberal Unionist Party
candidate = Ernest Morrison-Bell
votes = 5,191
percentage = 52.8
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Liberal Party (UK)
candidate = Charles Roden Buxton
votes = 4,632
percentage = 47.2
change = Election box majority
votes = 559
percentage = 5.7
change = Election box turnout
votes = 9,823
percentage =
change = Election box gain with party link
winner = Liberal Unionist Party
loser = Liberal Party (UK)
swing =

References

* "The Times", 20 January 1908

See also

* List of United Kingdom by-elections
* Ashburton constituency