1913 Londonderry City by-election

The 1913 Londonderry City by-election was a Parliamentary by-election held on 30 January 1913. The constituency returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system.

Vacancy

The sitting Unionist MP, the James Hamilton succeeded his father on his death as the Duke of Abercorn, so vacated his seat in the House of Commons to take up his seat in the House of Lords. He had been MP here since 1900.

Previous result

General election December 1910 electorate 5,068

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Irish Unionist	James Hamilton	2,415	51.1	+0.5
	Irish Parliamentary	Shane Leslie	2,310	48.9	−0.5
Majority			105	2.2	+1.0
Turnout			4,725	93.2	−1.8
	Irish Unionist hold		Swing	+0.5

Candidates

The Unionist candidate was 50-year-old Antrim-born, London-based soldier Hercules Pakenham.

The Catholic clergy, whose authority on the choice of nationalist candidate was total, surprisingly selected Liberal David Hogg, a 73-year-old local shirt manufacturer and a Protestant.

Campaign

The date of poll was set at 30 January, just 27 days after the death of the old Duke. This left little time for campaigning. Hogg's election address said he was a Liberal and a supporter of the government's Home Rule Bill; he did not canvass during the election.

Result

The Liberal Party gained the seat from the Irish Unionist Alliance.

Londonderry City by-election, 1913 electorate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	David Cleghorn Hogg	2,699	50.5	New
	Irish Unionist	Hercules Pakenham	2,642	49.5	−1.6
Majority			57	1.0	N/A
Turnout			5,341	97.6	+4.4
	Liberal gain from Irish Unionist		Swing	N/A

Aftermath

Hogg died in August 1914 causing another by-election at which the Liberal, Sir James Brown Dougherty was returned unopposed.

References

• Craig, F. W. S. (1974). British parliamentary election results 1885-1918 (1 ed.). London: Macmillan.
• Who's Who: www.ukwhoswho.com
• Debrett's House of Commons 1916