Aberdeen and Kincardine Central (UK Parliament constituency)

Aberdeen and Kincardine Central, also known as Central Aberdeenshire,[1] was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 until 1950. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

Aberdeen and Kincardine Central
Former County constituency
for the House of Commons
Subdivisions of ScotlandAberdeenshire
1918–1950
Number of membersOne
Replaced byEast Aberdeenshire and West Aberdeenshire
Created fromEast Aberdeenshire and West Aberdeenshire

History

The constituency was created by the Representation of the People Act 1918 and first used in the 1918 general election. It was abolished in 1950. For most of its existence, this was a Unionist seat.

Boundaries

Aberdeen and Kincardine Central was entirely within the county of Aberdeen and was one of six constituencies covering that county, the city of Aberdeen (which was a county of city) and the county of Kincardine. The rest of the county of Aberdeen was covered by the county constituencies of Aberdeen and Kincardine East, which was also entirely within that county, and Kincardine and West Aberdeenshire, which covered the county of Kincardine minus burghs covered by Montrose Burghs, and part of the county of Aberdeen. The city of Aberdeen was covered by the burgh constituencies of Aberdeen North and Aberdeen South, which were both entirely within the county of city area. Aberdeen and Kincardine Central consisted of the burghs of Ellon, Huntly, Inverurie, Kintore and Old Meldrum, and the districts of Aberdeen, Ellon, Garioch and Huntly.[2]

The same boundaries were used in the 1922 general election, the 1923 general election, the 1924 general election, the 1929 general election, the 1931 general election, the 1935 general election and the 1945 general election.

Prior to the 1918 boundary reforms, the county of Aberdeen had been covered, nominally, by the four constituencies of East Aberdeenshire, West Aberdeenshire, Aberdeen North, and Aberdeen South, and the county of Kincardine had been covered, nominally, by the Kincardineshire constituency. This arrangement dated from 1885, however, and predated both the redefinition of counties as local government areas, under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889, and the creation of the city of Aberdeen in 1900. 1918 constituency boundaries took account of new local government boundaries.

New constituency boundaries were drawn for the 1950 general election. Aberdeen and Kincardine Central was abolished and its area was divided between the new constituency of North Angus and Mearns and a new West Aberdeenshire. North Angus and Mearns was created to cover the county of Kincardine and part of the county of Angus. The new West Aberdeenshire was entirely within the county of Aberdeen, but boundaries differed from those of the earlier constituency of that name. The county of Aberdeen was then otherwise covered by East Aberdeenshire, and the city of Aberdeen was again covered by Aberdeen North and Aberdeen South.[2]

Members of Parliament
ElectionMemberParty
1918 Alexander Theodore Gordon Coalition Conservative
1919 by-election Murdoch McKenzie Wood Liberal
1924 Sir Robert Smith Unionist
1945 Henry Spence Unionist
1950 constituency abolished

Elections

Elections in the 1910s
General election 1918: Aberdeen and Kincardine Central [3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
C Unionist Alexander Theodore Gordon 6,546 52.6
Liberal John Henderson 5,908 47.4
Majority 638 5.2
Turnout 12,454 47.3
Unionist win (new seat)
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.
1919 Aberdeenshire and Kincardineshire Central by-election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Murdoch McKenzie Wood 4,950 37.5 −9.9
C Unionist Leybourne Francis Watson Davidson 4,764 36.1 -16.5
Labour Joseph Forbes Duncan 3,482 26.4 New
Majority 186 1.4 N/A
Turnout 13,196 50.1 +2.8
Liberal gain from Unionist Swing +3.3
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

Elections in the 1920s
General election 1922: Aberdeen and Kincardine Central [4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Murdoch McKenzie Wood 9,779 60.1 +22.6
Unionist Robert Smith 6,481 39.9 +3.8
Majority 3,298 20.2 +18.8
Turnout 16,260 56.9 +6.8
Liberal hold Swing +9.4
General election 1923: Aberdeen and Kincardine Central [5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Murdoch McKenzie Wood 9,818 53.6 -6.5
Unionist Robert Smith 8,507 46.4 +6.5
Majority 1,311 7.2 -13.0
Turnout 18,325 64.7 +7.8
Liberal hold Swing -6.5
General election 1924: Aberdeen and Kincardine Central [6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Robert Smith 9,130 44.4 -2.0
Liberal Murdoch McKenzie Wood 7,639 37.2 -16.4
Labour J. Newman 3,791 18.4 New
Majority 1,491 7.2 N/A
Turnout 20,560 71.7 +7.0
Unionist gain from Liberal Swing +7.2
Frederick Martin
General election 1929: Aberdeen and Kincardine Central [7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Robert Smith 10,773 43.6 -0.8
Liberal Frederick Martin 9,540 38.7 +1.5
Labour Arthur Fraser Macintosh 4,357 17.7 -0.7
Majority 1,233 4.9 -2.3
Turnout 24,670 63.0 -8.7
Unionist hold Swing -1.2

Elections in the 1930s
General election 1931: Aberdeen and Kincardine Central[8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Robert Smith 16,501 56.4 +12.8
Liberal Reginald Berkeley 12,758 43.6 +4.9
Majority 3,743 12.8 +7.9
Turnout 29,259 76.8 +14.8
Unionist hold Swing +3.9
General election 1935: Aberdeen and Kincardine Central [9]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Robert Smith 14,697 55.0 -1.4
Labour Gordon Stott 6,128 22.9 New
Liberal Russell Thomas 5,873 22.0 -21.6
Majority 8,569 32.1 +19.3
Turnout 26,698 66.8 -10.0
Unionist hold Swing +10.1

Elections in the 1940s

General Election 1939/40

Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the Autumn of 1939, the following candidates had been selected;

General election 1945: Aberdeenshire Central
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Henry Spence 15,702 52.3 -2.7
Labour D.S. Hay 7,997 26.6 +3.7
Liberal Ivor Davies 6,348 21.1 -0.9
Majority 7,705 25.7 -6.4
Turnout 30,047 68.6 -2.2
Unionist hold Swing -3.2

See also
  • Former United Kingdom Parliament constituencies

References
  1. The name is given as Central Aberdeenshire and Kincardinshire in the Scottish Politics website Archived September 28, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, and the constituency was entirely within the county of Aberdeen
  2. Boundaries of Parliamentary Constituencies 1885-1972 (ISBN 0-900178-09-4), F. W. S. Craig 1972
  3. The Times, 30 December 1918
  4. The Times, 17 November 1922
  5. The Times, 8 December 1923
  6. Oliver and Boyd's Edinburgh Almanack, 1927
  7. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, F W S Craig
  8. Whitaker's Almanack, 1934
  9. Whitaker's Almanack, 1939
  10. The Liberal Magazine, 1939
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