Mitcham (UK Parliament constituency)

Mitcham was a constituency comprising the emerging Mitcham, Wallington and Beddington suburbs of South London and until 1945 that of Carshalton, its largest of the area's four traditional divisions, in its south-west. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom by the first past the post system.

Mitcham
Former borough constituency
for the House of Commons
Extract from 1923 result: the blue central area which from 1918 creation until 1945 extended further south than other semi-urban seats of London's outskirts
CountyCounty of London, then Greater London
19181974 (1974)
SeatsOne
Created fromWimbledon
Replaced byMitcham and Morden, with Wallington & Beddington added to the Carshalton seat.
During its existence contributed to new seat(s) of:Carshalton

It was created for the 1918 general election from part of Wimbledon when it reached southwards up onto the North Downs, further south than Croydon South, and was abolished for the February 1974 general election.

Two of its MPs became Home Secretary, one after changing seat of candidature, on boundary reforms.

Boundaries

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1918–1945: The Urban Districts of Beddington and Wallington, Carshalton, and Mitcham (the latter as a northern end).

1945–1974: The Boroughs of Beddington and Wallington, and Mitcham (the latter as a northern end).

Members of Parliament

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Election Member Party Notes
1918 Thomas Worsfold Conservative Resigned 1923
1923 by-election James Chuter Ede Labour Subsequently, MP for South Shields; Home Secretary 1945–51; Leader of the House of Commons 1951
1923 Richard Meller Conservative Died 1940
1940 by-election Malcolm Robertson Conservative
1945 Tom Braddock Labour
1950 Robert Carr Conservative Leader of the House of Commons 1972; Home Secretary 1972–74; subsequently MP for Carshalton

February 1974: constituency abolished: see Mitcham and Morden

Election results

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1970s

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General election 1970: Mitcham
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Robert Carr 27,257 54.58 +8.85
Labour Reginald C Vincent 22,047 44.15 −0.59
Communist Sid French 638 1.28 +0.19
Majority 5,210 10.43
Turnout 49,942 68.76
Conservative hold Swing +4.72

1960s

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General election 1966: Mitcham
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Robert Carr 24,234 45.73
Labour Thomas J Higgs 23,706 44.74
Liberal Ross C Burgess 4,470 8.44
Communist Sid French 580 1.09
Majority 528 0.99
Turnout 52,990 79.43
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1964: Mitcham
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Robert Carr 25,087 46.61
Labour Roger Charles Mackay 21,175 39.34
Liberal William Antony Heath 6,902 12.82
Communist Sid French 657 1.22 New
Majority 3,912 7.27
Turnout 53,821 79.19
Conservative hold Swing

1950s

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General election 1959: Mitcham
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Robert Carr 33,661 58.53
Labour Co-op Eric JC Smythe 23,845 41.47
Majority 9,816 17.06
Turnout 57,506 81.61
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1955: Mitcham
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Robert Carr 32,798 56.54
Labour Hugh Jenkins 25,208 43.46
Majority 7,590 13.08
Turnout 58,006 80.53
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1951: Mitcham
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Robert Carr 34,056 54.71
Labour Harry Randall 28,187 45.29
Majority 5,869 9.42
Turnout 62,243 84.60
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1950: Mitcham
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Robert Carr 31,881 50.77
Labour Tom Braddock 27,055 43.08
Liberal Doreen L Page 3,864 6.15 New
Majority 4,826 7.69 N/A
Turnout 62,800 85.84
Conservative gain from Labour Swing

1940s

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General election 1945: Mitcham
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Tom Braddock 26,910 57.68
Conservative Malcolm Robertson 19,742 42.32
Majority 7,168 15.36 N/A
Turnout 46,652 73.58
Labour gain from Conservative Swing
1940 Mitcham by-election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Malcolm Robertson Unopposed N/A N/A
Conservative hold Swing

1930s

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General election 1935: Mitcham
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Richard Meller 35,239 57.46
Labour Paul Winterton 26,087 42.54
Majority 9,152 14.92
Turnout 61,326 66.74
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1931: Mitcham
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Richard Meller 38,948 76.26
Labour W Graham 12,124 23.74
Majority 26,824 52.52
Turnout 51,072 69.97
Conservative hold Swing

1920s

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General election 1929: Mitcham [1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Richard Meller 20,254 47.9 −14.1
Labour Skene Mackay 13,057 30.8 −7.2
Liberal Raymond V. Jones 9,016 21.3 New
Majority 7,197 17.1 −6.9
Turnout 42,327 70.2 −4.6
Registered electors 60,311
Unionist hold Swing −3.5
General election 1924: Mitcham [2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Richard Meller 15,984 62.0 +9.7
Labour James Chuter Ede 9,776 38.0 −9.7
Majority 6,208 24.0 +19.4
Turnout 25,760 74.8 +11.6
Registered electors 34,435
Unionist hold Swing +9.7
General election 1923: Mitcham [3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Richard Meller 10,829 52.3 −12.7
Labour James Chuter Ede 9,877 47.7 N/A
Majority 952 4.6 −25.4
Turnout 20,706 63.2 +10.5
Registered electors 32,755
Unionist hold Swing −12.7
By-election 1923: Mitcham [4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour James Chuter Ede 8,029 38.0 New
Unionist Arthur Griffith-Boscawen 7,196 34.1 −30.9
Liberal Ernest Brown 3,214 15.2 −19.8
Independent J.T. Catterall 2,684 12.7 New
Majority 833 3.9 N/A
Turnout 21,123 66.2 +13.5
Registered electors 31,927
Labour gain from Unionist Swing N/A
General election 1922: Mitcham [5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Thomas Worsfold 10,934 65.0 +4.4
Liberal A.E. Bennetts 5,898 35.0 −4.4
Majority 5,036 30.0 +8.8
Turnout 16,832 52.7 +9.1
Registered electors 31,927
Unionist hold Swing +4.4

1910s

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General election 1918: Mitcham [6][7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
C Unionist Thomas Worsfold 7,651 60.6
Liberal Samuel Barrow [8] 4,968 39.4
Majority 2,683 21.2
Turnout 12,619 43.6
Registered electors 28,952
Unionist win (new seat)
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

References

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  1. ^ British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
  2. ^ British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
  3. ^ British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
  4. ^ British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
  5. ^ British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
  6. ^ British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
  7. ^ Debrett's House of Commons and the Judicial Bench, 1922
  8. ^ ‘BARROW, Sir Samuel’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2016; online edn, Oxford University Press, 2014; online edn, April 2014 accessed 18 Sept 2017