1961 Glasgow Bridgeton by-election
A 1961 by-election for the Glasgow Bridgeton constituency was held on Thursday 16 November 1961.
The Labour Party candidate, James Bennett managed to retain the seat for his party, with a majority of 6,995 votes.[1]
The by-election was significant, in that it was one of the first elections in which the Scottish National Party achieved a 19% share of the vote; only narrowly beaten by the Unionist candidate M.McNeill for second place.[2] Although this was not exceptional and did not receive much attention at the time, it was the forerunner of more significant serious success for the SNP later in the 1960s.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | James Bennett | 10,930 | 57.5 | −5.9 | |
| Unionist | Malcolm McNeill | 3,935 | 20.7 | −15.9 | |
| SNP | Ian Macdonald | 3,549 | 18.7 | New | |
| Ind. Labour Party | George Stone | 586 | 3.1 | N/A | |
| Majority | 6,995 | 36.8 | +10.0 | ||
| Turnout | 19,000 | 41.9 | −26.6 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
References
- ^ "Majority down at Bridgeton". The Glasgow Herald. 17 November 1961. p. 1. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
- ^ Brand, Jack (1978). National Movement in Scotland. Routledge. p. 258. ISBN 0710088663.
- ^ The Times, 17 November 1961
- ^ "1961 By Election Results". Archived from the original on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 15 August 2015.