1966 Kingston upon Hull North by-election
# 1966 Kingston upon Hull North by-election

The Kingston upon Hull North by-election of 27 January 1966 was held after the death of Labour Member of Parliament (MP) Henry Solomons on 7 November 1965. The seat was retained with an increased majority by Kevin McNamara of the Labour Party. This has been attributed to the announcement of the construction of the Humber Bridge by the government during the campaign.

## Previous general election result

1964 general election: Kingston upon Hull North :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Henry Solomons | 20,664 | 43.31 |
| | Conservative | Michael Coulson | 19,483 | 40.83 |
| | Liberal | Laurie Millward | 7,570 | 15.86 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,181 | 2.48 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,717 | 77.23 |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | |

## Results

1966 Kingston upon Hull North by-election :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Kevin McNamara | 24,479 | 52.22 | +8.91 |
| | Conservative | Toby Jessel | 19,128 | 40.81 | +0.05 |
| | Liberal | Laurie Millward | 2,945 | 6.28 | −11.60 |
| | Radical Alliance | Richard Gott | 253 | 0.54 | New |
| | Independent | Russell E. Eckley | 35 | 0.07 | New |
| | Independent | Kelvin Woodburne | 33 | 0.07 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,351 | 11.41 | +8.93 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,873 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +4.4 | |

## Aftermath

Harold Wilson's Labour Party formed a government after winning a majority of four seats at the 1964 general election. Shortly after this by-election, Wilson called a general election for 31 March. Wilson's hope that he would be returned to office with a larger majority had been encouraged by the government's victory at the Kingston upon Hull North by-election. In the end, Wilson's decision was vindicated, as Labour was returned with a larger majority of 96 seats.

