1967 Glasgow Pollok by-election

The 1967 Glasgow Pollok by-election of 9 March 1967 was held after the death of Labour MP (MP) Alex Garrow:

1967 Glasgow Pollok by-election

9 March 1967
Glasgow Pollok constituency
First party Second party Third party   Candidate Esmond Wright Dick Douglas George Leslie Party Conservative Labour SNP Popular vote 14,270 12,069 10,884 Percentage 36.9% 31.2% 28.2% Swing 10.6% 21.2% New
Map showing the Glasgow Pollok Parliamentary constituency within Scotland.
MP before election Alex Garrow Labour Subsequent MP Esmond Wright Conservative

The seat was marginal, having been won by Labour at the 1966 United Kingdom general election by under 2,000 votes.

Candidates

• Esmond Wright for the Conservatives was a historian and author
• Labour nominated local councillor and campaigner Dick Douglas
• The Scottish National Party nominated George Leslie, who had trained as a vet after studying at Glasgow University.
• The local Liberal Party association nominated Ian Miller
• The Communists chose Alex Murray, their Scottish Secretary

Result of the previous general election

General election 1966: Glasgow Pollok

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alex Garrow	21,257	52.44
	Conservative	P T Smollett	19,282	47.56
Majority			1,975	4.88
Turnout			40,539
	Labour hold		Swing

Result of the by-election

Glasgow Pollok by-election, 9 March 1967

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Esmond Wright	14,270	36.92	10.64
	Labour	Dick Douglas	12,069	31.22	21.22
	SNP	George Leslie	10,884	28.16	New
	Liberal	Ian Miller	735	1.90	New
	Communist	Alexander Murray	694	1.80	New
Majority			2,201	5.70	N/A
Turnout			38,652
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

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".