1889 West Carmarthenshire by-election
The 1889 West Carmarthenshire by-election was a parliamentary by-election held for the British House of Commons constituency of West Carmarthenshire in Wales on 17 July 1889. The by-election was caused by the death of the sitting Liberal MP, W. R. H. Powell.
Candidates
[edit]The Liberals had won the seat comfortably in 1885, with Powell heavily defeating the former Conservative member for Carmarthenshire, Viscount Emlyn. The party moved quickly to choose a new candidate and there was a strong feeling that the new candidate should be a nonconformist. Their choice fell upon John Lloyd Morgan, son of William Morgan, former principal of the Presbyterian College at Carmarthen, who was chosen unanimously following a selection conference at Carmarthen.[1]
There was no certainty that the Conservatives would contest the seat, and an editorial in the Liberal-inclined Carmarthen newspaper, the Welshman, expressed the view that unless the former member, Lord Emlyn, could be induced to come forward, the party's prospects were poor.[2] Emlyn declined, and the Conservative choice, fell upon Hugh Williams-Drummond, a member of another prominent Carmarthenshire family.
Thus, within a couple of weeks, both the Liberal and Conservative parties had chosen candidates who were of a similar age and who were both fighting their first parliamentary campaign. John Lloyd Morgan, the Liberal candidate, was thought to have an advantage over his Conservative opponent, Hugh Williams-Drummond, in that he was known to the electorate, having spoken for the former member at the previous election.[3]
Result
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | John Lloyd Morgan | 4,252 | 62.7 | −5.9 | |
| Conservative | Hugh Henry John Williams-Drummond | 2,533 | 37.3 | +5.9 | |
| Majority | 1,719 | 25.4 | −11.8 | ||
| Turnout | 6,785 | 72.3 | +11.1 | ||
| Registered electors | 9,379 | ||||
| Liberal hold | Swing | -5.9 | |||
References
[edit]- ^ "Conference of Liberals at Carmarthen". Welshman. 5 July 1889.
- ^ "editorial". Welshman. 5 July 1889.
- ^ "Editorial". Carmarthen Journal. 12 July 1889. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
- ^ Craig, F. W. S. (1974). British parliamentary election results 1885-1918 (1 ed.). London and Basingstoke: The Macmillan Press Ltd. ISBN 9780333169032. Page 473
- ^ The Constitutional Year Book, 1904, published by Conservative Central Office, page 177 (201 in web page)
- ^ "West Carmarthenshire Election". Carmarthen Journal. 19 July 1889. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
