1941 Dunbartonshire by-election
The 1941 Dunbartonshire by-election was held on 27 February 1941. The by-election was held due to the appointment as sheriff substitute of the incumbent Labour MP, Thomas Cassells. It was won by the Labour candidate Adam McKinlay.[1]
Because of the wartime truce his only opponent was Malcolm MacEwen, a Communist, who had a relatively strong vote, possibly because the constituency did include the Vale of Leven, a "little Moscow". It took place before the German invasion of the Soviet Union, when the Communist Party changed its line.
The Scottish National Party had intended to stand a candidate - Robert MacEwen, the brother of Malcolm. However, he was serving in the Army at the time, and was not given permission by the military authorities to stand as a candidate; there was a dispute as to whether he had submitted his request in time and questions were raised in Parliament as to whether it had been delayed.[2][3]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Adam McKinlay | 21,900 | 85.0 | +36.9 | |
| Communist | Malcolm MacEwen | 3,862 | 15.0 | New | |
| Majority | 18,038 | 70.0 | +67.6 | ||
| Turnout | 25,762 | 38.7 | −29.9 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
References
- ^ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs
- ^ "By-Election Mystery". Daily Herald. 18 February 1941.
- ^ "Parliamentary Candidature - Oral Questions", Hansard, 25 February 1925
- ^ Whitaker's Almanack, 1939