1997 Beckenham by-election
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20 November 1997
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| Turnout | 43.7% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A by-election for the United Kingdom parliamentary constituency of Beckenham was held on 20 November 1997, triggered by the resignation of the incumbent Conservative Party Member of Parliament (MP) Piers Merchant, who stood down following a scandal regarding his affair with a teenage bar hostess. The Conservatives held the seat, with Jacqui Lait winning the by-election.
The 1997 Winchester by-election was held on the same day.
Background
Piers Merchant had been under pressure during the 1997 general election campaign earlier that year after The Sun published stories about his relationship with a 17-year-old bar hostess whom he had employed as a researcher,[1][2] but he had denied any impropriety, and retained the confidence of his local association. After further newspaper stories and video footage were published which confirmed that his denial had been misleading, he resigned on 21 October 1997 by acceping the office of Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead – a ceremonial procedure for Parliamentary resignations.[2]
At the by-election, the Conservatives selected Jacqui Lait, who had lost her seat at Hastings and Rye in the general election. The Labour candidate, Robert (Bob) Hughes, was a long time resident of the constituency and had contested the seat at the general election. The Liberal Democrats also chose their general election candidate, Rosemary Vetterlein. The Conservatives were successful in retaining the seat with a further reduced majority.[3] This was the last election (general or by-election) that the Referendum Party contested; it wound up soon afterwards.
Result
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Jacqui Lait | 13,162 | 41.3 | –1.2 | |
| Labour | Robert N. Hughes | 11,935 | 37.4 | +4.0 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Rosemary E. Vetterlein | 5,864 | 18.4 | +0.1 | |
| Liberal | Phil H. Rimmer | 330 | 1.0 | –0.3 | |
| National Front | John C. McAuley | 267 | 0.8 | +0.1 | |
| Referendum | Leonard F. Mead | 237 | 0.8 | –2.3 | |
| Independent | John Campion | 69 | 0.2 | New | |
| Natural Law | John D. Small | 44 | 0.1 | New | |
| Majority | 1,227 | 3.9 | –5.2 | ||
| Turnout | 31,908 | 43.7 | –30.6 | ||
| Registered electors | 74,019 | ||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | –2.6 | |||
Previous result
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Piers Merchant | 23,084 | 42.5 | –14.4 | |
| Labour | Robert N. Hughes | 18,131 | 33.4 | +9.6 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Rosemary E. Vetterlein | 9,858 | 18.1 | +0.7 | |
| Referendum | Leonard F. Mead | 1,663 | 3.1 | New | |
| Liberal | Phil H. Rimmer | 720 | 1.3 | –0.1 | |
| UKIP | Christopher N. Pratt | 506 | 0.9 | New | |
| National Front | John C. McAuley | 388 | 0.7 | New | |
| Majority | 4,953 | 9.1 | –23.9 | ||
| Turnout | 54,350 | 74.3 | –3.3 | ||
| Registered electors | 73,126 | ||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | –15.0 | |||
References
- ↑ BBC: Politics 97 (general election campaign) Retrieved 5 November 2011
- 1 2 "Politics: Demise of man who always protested his innocence", The Independent, retrieved 5 November 2011
- ↑ "Blow for Tories as majority is reduced in by-election", The Independent, retrieved 5 November 2011
- ↑ Boothroyd, David. "Results of Byelections in the 1997-2002 Parliament". United Kingdom Election Results. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
- ↑ "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.