Kilmarnock (UK Parliament constituency)

Kilmarnock was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 to 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

For the 1832–1918 constituency, see Kilmarnock Burghs (UK Parliament constituency).
Kilmarnock
Former County constituency
for the House of Commons
Subdivisions of ScotlandAyrshire
Major settlementsKilmarnock
1918–1983
Number of membersOne
Replaced byKilmarnock and Loudoun
Created fromKilmarnock Burghs, Ayrshire North and Ayrshire South

The constituency included the area of the former parliamentary burgh of Kilmarnock. The parliamentary burgh had been, previously, a component of the Kilmarnock Burghs constituency.

Prominent Members for this seat included long-serving Scottish Secretary Willie Ross, and senior judge Craigie Mason Aitchison

Boundaries

1918 to 1950

The constituency was created by the Representation of the People Act 1918 as one of four constituencies covering the county of Ayr and the county of Bute. Of the other three constituencies, two were county constituencies: Bute and Northern Ayrshire and South Ayrshire. The third, Ayr Burghs, was a district of burghs constituency. All four constituencies were entirely within the boundaries of the two counties.

The Kilmarnock constituency consisted of "The county district of Kilmarnock, inclusive of all burghs situated therein except insofar as included in the Ayr District of Burghs."

The counties of Ayr and Bute had been covered, previously, by the five constituencies of Ayr Burghs, Buteshire, Kilmarnock Burghs, North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire. Two of these, Ayr Burghs and Kilmarnock Burghs, had included areas (parliamentary burghs) outside the two counties.

1950 to 1974

Constituency boundaries were redrawn in 1950, creating five constituencies to cover the counties of Ayr and Bute. Ayr Burghs was abolished and two new county constituencies, Ayr and Central Ayrshire, were created. Part of the Kilmarnock constituency was transferred to the new Central Ayrshire constituency.

1974 to 1975

In 1974, the boundary between the Kilmarnock and Ayrshire Central constituencies was redrawn to enlarge Kilmarnock.

1975 to 1983

In 1975, under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, local government counties were abolished and replaced by a system of regions and districts. The areas of the counties of Ayr and Bute were merged into the Strathclyde region and, thus, the Kilmarnock constituency became one of a number covering the region. Eight years were to elapse before new constituency boundaries took account of new local government boundaries.

In 1983 the Kilmarnock constituency was merged into the Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency.

Members of Parliament
ElectionMember[1]Party
1918 Alexander Shaw Coalition Liberal
1922 Liberal
1923 Robert Climie Labour
1924 Charles MacAndrew Scottish Unionist Party
1929 Robert Climie Labour
1929 by-election Craigie Aitchison Labour
1931 National Labour
1933 by-election Kenneth Lindsay National Labour
1945 Clarice Shaw Labour
1946 by-election Willie Ross Labour
1979 William McKelvey Labour
1983 constituency abolished: see Kilmarnock and Loudoun

Election results

Elections in the 1910s
Alexander Shaw
General election 1918: Kilmarnock [2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
C Liberal Alexander Shaw 13,568 67.1
Co-operative Party Peter Malcolm 6,652 32.9
Majority 6,916 34.2
Turnout 20,220 62.6
Registered electors 32,298
Liberal win (new seat)
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

Elections in the 1920s
General election 1922: Kilmarnock [3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Alexander Shaw 12,991 54.7 −12.4
Labour Robert Climie 10,752 45.3 New
Majority 2,239 9.4 −24.8
Turnout 23,743 71.5 +8.9
Registered electors 33,210
Liberal hold Swing −12.4
Sir Donald Maclean
General election 1923: Kilmarnock [4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Robert Climie 10,992 43.2 −2.1
Liberal Donald Maclean 8,185 32.1 −22.6
Unionist Alexander Morrice Mackay 6,298 24.7 New
Majority 2,807 11.1 N/A
Turnout 25,475 75.7 +4.2
Registered electors 33,652
Labour gain from Liberal Swing +10.3
General election 1924: Kilmarnock [5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Charles MacAndrew 14,237 52.2 +27.5
Labour Robert Climie 13,054 47.8 +4.6
Majority 1,183 4.4 N/A
Turnout 27,291 79.5 +3.8
Registered electors 34,315
Unionist gain from Labour Swing +11.5
General election 1929: Kilmarnock
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Robert Climie 17,368 48.2 +0.4
Unionist Charles MacAndrew 10,939 30.4 −21.8
Liberal James Rutherford 7,700 21.4 New
Majority 6,429 17.8 N/A
Turnout 36,007 77.8 −1.7
Registered electors 46,310
Labour gain from Unionist Swing +11.1
1929 Kilmarnock by-election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Craigie Aitchison 18,465 55.6 +7.4
Unionist Charles MacAndrew 13,270 40.0 +9.6
Communist Isabel Brown 1,448 4.4 New
Majority 5,195 15.6 −2.2
Turnout 33,183 71.7 −6.1
Registered electors 46,310
Labour hold Swing −1.1

Elections in the 1930s
General election 1931: Kilmarnock
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National Labour Craigie Aitchison 21,803 59.6 New
Ind. Labour Party John Pollock 14,767 40.4 New
Majority 7,036 19.2 +3.6
Turnout 36,580 79.5 +7.8
National Labour hold Swing N/A
1933 Kilmarnock by-election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National Labour Kenneth Lindsay 12,577 34.8 −24.8
Labour James Barr 9,924 27.4 New
Ind. Labour Party John Pollock 7,575 20.9 −19.5
Scottish Party Alexander MacEwen 6,098 16.9 New
Majority 2,653 7.4 −11.8
Turnout 36,174 77.3 −2.2
National Labour hold Swing N/A
General election 1935: Kilmarnock [6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National Labour Kenneth Lindsay 19,115 50.9 +16.1
Labour James Crawford 12,558 33.4 +6.0
Ind. Labour Party John Pollock 3,582 9.5 -11.4
SNP T. W. Campbell 2,346 6.2 -10.7
Majority 6,557 17.5 +10.1
Turnout 37,601 78.8 +1.5
National Labour hold Swing +5.0

Elections in the 1940s
General election 1945: Kilmarnock
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Clarice Shaw 23,837 59.4 +26.0
Unionist George E.O. Walker 16,300 40.6 New
Majority 7,537 18.8 N/A
Turnout 40,137 76.1 −2.7
Labour gain from National Labour Swing N/A
1946 Kilmarnock by-election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Willie Ross 22,456 59.7 +0.3
Unionist George E.O. Walker 12,239 32.5 −8.1
SNP George Dott 2,932 7.8 New
Majority 10,217 27.2 +8.4
Turnout 37,627 68.4 −7.7
Labour hold Swing +4.2

Elections in the 1950s
General election 1950: Kilmarnock[7][8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Willie Ross 22,412 56.58 -2.80
Unionist McInnes Shaw 14,179 35.80 -4.80
Liberal John Gibson Thomson 2,157 5.45 New
Communist Isabel Brown 860 2.17 New
Majority 8,233 20.79 +2.0
Turnout 39,608 86.15 +10.1
Registered electors 45,974
Labour hold Swing +1.0
General election 1951: Kilmarnock[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Willie Ross 24,664 60.72 +4.14
Unionist Norman Macleod Glen 15,955 39.28 +3.48
Majority 8,709 21.44 +0.65
Turnout 40,619 86.66 +0.51
Registered electors 46,869
Labour hold Swing +0.33
General election 1955: Kilmarnock[11][12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Willie Ross 23,324 60.89 +0.17
Unionist John Sutherland[13] 14,983 39.11 -0.17
Majority 8,341 21.78 +0.34
Turnout 38,307 81.07 -5.59
Registered electors 47,254
Labour hold Swing +0.17
General election 1959: Kilmarnock[14][15]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Willie Ross 25,379 62.72 +1.83
Unionist R Ian McNaught 15,087 37.28 -1.83
Majority 10,292 25.44 +3.66
Turnout 40,466 82.43 +1.36
Registered electors 49,090
Labour hold Swing +1.83

Elections in the 1960s
General election 1964: Kilmarnock[16][17]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Willie Ross 25,173 62.29 -0.43
Unionist Graham H Webster[18] 10,796 26.71 -10.57
Liberal Ian M Will 4,443 10.99 New
Majority 14,377 35.58 +10.16
Turnout 40,412 82.77 +0.34
Registered electors 48,824
Labour hold Swing +5.04
General election 1966: Kilmarnock[19][20]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Willie Ross 26,036 68.54 +6.25
Conservative Albert McQuarrie 11,949 31.46 +4.75
Majority 14,087 37.08 +1.50
Turnout 37,985 79.02 -3.75
Registered electors 48,073
Labour hold Swing +0.75

Elections in the 1970s
General election 1970: Kilmarnock[21]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Willie Ross 24,477 59.3 -9.2
Conservative G Law 11,476 27.8 -3.6
SNP Alistair MacInnes 2,836 6.9 New
Liberal Archibald James Wight 2,459 6.0 New
Majority 13,001 31.52 -5.6
Turnout 41,248 79.1 0.0
Labour hold Swing
General election February 1974: Kilmarnock[22][23]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Willie Ross 23,544 47.20 -12.14
Conservative Kenneth Alexander Ross 13,817 27.70 -0.12
SNP Alistair MacInnes 7,644 15.32 +7.44
Liberal Archibald James Wight 4,878 9.78 +3.82
Majority 9,727 19.50 -12.02
Turnout 49,883 83.25 +3.19
Labour hold Swing
General election October 1974: Kilmarnock [23][24][25]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Willie Ross 22,184 45.69 -1.51
SNP Alistair MacInnes 14,655 30.19 +14.86
Conservative William Adams 9,203 18.96 -8.74
Liberal Kevin Purcell 2,508 5.17 -4.61
Majority 7,529 15.50 -4.00
Turnout 48,550 80.41 -2.84
Labour hold Swing -8.18
General election 1979: Kilmarnock [23][26]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour William McKelvey 25,718 52.56 +6.87
Conservative John Corbett 14,251 29.12 +10.17
SNP Alistair MacInnes 8,963 18.32 -11.87
Majority 11,467 23.44 +7.93
Turnout 48,932 81.08 +0.67
Labour hold Swing -1.65

See also

References
  1. Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "K" (part 2)
  2. Whitaker's Almanack, 1920
  3. The Times, 17 November 1922
  4. The Times, 8 December 1923
  5. Oliver & Boyd's Edinburgh Almanac, 1927
  6. Whitaker's Almanack, 1939
  7. Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1950". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  9. Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1951". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  11. Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1955". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  13. "Unionist Choice in Kilmarnock - Mr John Sutherland" (171(235)). The Glasgow Herald. 2 October 1953. p. 6. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  14. Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1959". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  16. Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1964". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  18. "Unionist Choice for Kilmarnock - Mr Graham Webster" (181(260)). The Glasgow Herald. 26 November 1963. p. 11. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  19. Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1966". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
  21. Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1970". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 29 June 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  22. Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results February 1974". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  23. "'Kilmarnock', Feb 1974 - May 1983". ElectionWeb Project. Cognitive Computing Limited. Archived from the original on 3 April 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  24. Whitaker's Almanack, 1977
  25. Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results October 1974". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  26. Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1979". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  • Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1969]. British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3rd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.

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