1967 Glasgow Pollok by-election

Candidates

• Conservative Party candidate Esmond Wright was a historian and author
• The Labour Party nominated local councillor and campaigner Dick Douglas as their candidate
• George Leslie, who had trained as a vet after studying at Glasgow University, stood for the Scottish National Party (SNP)
• The local Liberal Party association nominated Ian Miller
• The Communist Party of Great Britain chose Alex Murray, their Scottish Secretary, to be their candidate

Result of the previous general election

Result of the by-election

Both main parties lost votes compared with the previous general election due to the good showing of the SNP, who recorded what was then their best result in a Glasgow constituency. However, as the Conservatives had predicted, the SNP drew more votes from Labour, allowing Wright to gain the seat with a majority of 2,201. It was the first time the Conservatives had gained a seat in Scotland since the 1959 general election and the party's first by-election gain since the Glasgow Camlachie by-election in 1948. The Glasgow Herald suggested that the result would be claimed as a turning point by the Conservatives in Scotland, while Labour would have to eat "a lot of campaign words", having predicted that they would have an increased majority and that the SNP would lose their deposit. Having almost pushed Labour into third place the result was described by the same newspaper as a "triumph" for the SNP, who had not previously contested the constituency, while the poor showing by the Liberals was labelled "a disaster".

References

References

1. [http://by-elections.co.uk/67.html#glasgowpollok Full results] {{webarchive. link. (29 March 2012)
2. [http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/ge66/i09.htm Election results] {{Webarchive. link. (16 June 2015 PoliticsResources.net)
3. (10 March 1967). "Tories win Pollock by 2201 votes". The Glasgow Herald.