Английская Википедия:2023 Tamworth by-election

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The 2023 Tamworth by-election was held on 19 October 2023 for the UK parliamentary constituency of Tamworth, due to the resignation of former Conservative MP Chris Pincher. Pincher had announced his resignation following a sexual misconduct scandal, and his recommended suspension from the House of Commons for eight weeks. The Tamworth by-election was held on the same day as the 2023 Mid Bedfordshire by-election.

The seat was won by Sarah Edwards, the Labour candidate, with a 23.9% swing, the second-biggest from Conservative to Labour since the 1945 election. The turnout of the by-election was 35.9%.

Background

Chris Pincher resignation

Chris Pincher, a former Deputy Chief Whip, was involved in a controversy following allegations of sexual misconduct. Pincher resigned as Deputy Chief Whip on 30 June 2022, and was suspended as a Conservative MP following allegations that he had sexually assaulted two men. Further allegations were made in July, which pre-dated his appointment by Boris Johnson, who originally denied knowledge of the allegations. It was later revealed Johnson had been aware, and many cited this scandal as the final straw that led to Johnson's resignation.

The Standards Committee upheld the allegations of sexual assault in July and recommended an eight-week suspension from the Commons. Pincher appealed the decision, but lost the appeal. The eight-week suspension would have been enough to trigger a recall petition, but Pincher resigned before the House could vote on the recommended suspension.

Constituency

Tamworth constituency consists of the southeast corner of Staffordshire, including the towns of Fazeley and Tamworth. It was previously considered to be a bellwether constituency, but had become a Conservative safe seat in recent years, with a majority of nearly 20,000 in the 2019 election. During the New Labour years of 1997 to 2010 Brian Jenkins served as the constituency's MP. The constituency voted 66% for leave in the 2016 EU membership referendum. The constituency last had a by-election in 1996, when it was known as South East Staffordshire. Labour took the seat from the Conservatives.

Candidates

On 18 June 2023, prior to Pincher's resignation, Conservative MP Eddie Hughes had been selected as the candidate for Tamworth at the next general election. Hughes is currently the MP for the nearby Walsall North constituency, which is being abolished at the next general election under the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies. If Hughes had stood and won the by-election, this would have triggered another by-election in Walsall North. However, Hughes announced on 7 September that he would not be standing in the by-election.

The Conservatives selected Andrew Cooper as their candidate, a councillor in Tamworth since 2021. Cooper was raised on a council estate in Tamworth and served in the Army. Before the election it was reported that he had shared an offensive tweet about families in poverty. At the count he left the stage hurriedly during the winning candidate's speech.

On 23 July, Labour selected Sarah Edwards to be their candidate. She is a Unite union official from Moseley who has worked for the charity Oxfam.

Sunny Virk, a local barrister and mediator, was the Liberal Democrat candidate. Ian Cooper is the Reform UK candidate. Former university lecturer Dr. Sue Howarth stood for the Green Party. Robert Bilcliff stood for UKIP. He was a member of Tamworth Borough Council for Stonydelph from 2016 to 2021. Ashlea Simon stood for Britain First. The party chair, she previously contested the 2022 Wakefield by-election for the party.

Local teacher and former Mayor of Tamworth, Richard Kingstone announced his intention to stand as an independent, but later made a statement announcing he would no longer be standing due to personal circumstances.

Result

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Bar chart of the election result.

Шаблон:Election box begin Шаблон:Election box winning candidate with party link Шаблон:Election box candidate with party link Шаблон:Election box candidate with party link Шаблон:Election box candidate with party link Шаблон:Election box candidate with party link Шаблон:Election box candidate with party link Шаблон:Election box candidate with party link Шаблон:Election box candidate with party link Шаблон:Election box candidate Шаблон:Election box majority Шаблон:Election box turnout Шаблон:Election box gain with party link Шаблон:Election box end A similar substantial swing, resulting in a Labour gain from the Conservatives, was seen in the concurrent Mid Bedfordshire by-election. Psephologist John Curtice determined these results to be "one of worst nights any government has endured".

Parties to the right of the Conservatives (Reform UK, Britain First and UKIP) received a total combined vote of 9.4%, although Politics.co.uk suggested that this was due to the low turnout.

See also

• 2023 Mid Bedfordshire by-election, held on the same day.
• 1996 South East Staffordshire by-election, a by-election in the predecessor constituency.