Argyllshire by-election, 1903

The Argyllshire by-election was a Parliamentary by-election. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system.

Vacancy

Donald Ninian Nicol had been Conservative MP for the seat of Argyllshire since the 1895 General Election. He died on 27 July 1903 at the age of 60.^[1]

Electoral history

The seat had been Conservative since they gained it in 1895. They easily held the seat at the last election, with an increased majority;

John Ainsworth

General Election January 1900[2] Electorate 10,405
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Donald Ninian Nicol	3,834	54.2
	Liberal	John Stirling Ainsworth	3,234	45.8
Turnout
Majority			600
	Conservative hold		Swing

Candidates

The local Conservative Association selected 63-year-old Charles Stewart as their candidate to defend the seat. He was a solicitor.^[3]

The local Liberal Association selected 59-year-old John Stirling Ainsworth as their candidate to gain the seat. Ainsworth contested the Barrow-in-Furness constituency at the 1886 general election and Argyllshire in 1900. He commanded the 3rd Volunteer Battalion, the Border Regiment from 1898-1902.^[4]

Campaign

Polling Day was fixed for the 26 August 1903, just 30 days after the previous MP died.

Result

The Liberals gained the seat from the Conservatives;

1903 Argyllshire by-election[5] Electorate 10,643
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	John Stirling Ainsworth	4,326	61.2
	Conservative	Charles Stewart	2,740	38.8
Turnout				66.4
Majority			1,586	22.4
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing

Aftermath

At the following General Election the result was;

General Election January 1906[6] Electorate 11,216
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	John Stirling Ainsworth	4,507	59.9
	Conservative	George Aitken Clark Hutchison	3,012	40.1
Turnout				67.0
Majority			1,495
	Liberal hold		Swing

References

1. Who Was Who
2. British parliamentary election results 1885-1918 by Craig
3. Who Was Who
4. Who Was Who
5. British parliamentary election results 1885-1918 by Craig
6. British parliamentary election results 1885-1918 by Craig