Hitchin by-election, 1911
A by-election was held in Hitchin constituency in 1911 to fill a vacancy in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.
Vacancy
Dr Alfred Hillier had been the Conservative MP for Hitchin since regaining the seat from the Liberals in January 1910. He committed suicide on 24 October 1911 in his home at 20 Eccleston Square, London, England.
Electoral history
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Alfred Peter Hillier | 5,233 | 51.4 | ||
| Liberal | Thomas Tylston Greg | 4,942 | 48.6 | ||
| Majority | 2.8 | ||||
| Turnout | |||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Candidates
The new Conservative candidate was Robert Cecil who had been Conservative MP for Marylebone East until January 1910. In 1910 he unsuccessfully contested Blackburn in the January election and Wisbech in the December election. Thomas Tylston Greg, who had been the Liberal candidate last time was again chosen to contest the seat.
Result
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Robert Cecil | 5,542 | |||
| Liberal | Thomas Tylston Greg | 3,909 | |||
| Majority | |||||
| Turnout | |||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Aftermath
A General Election was due to take place by the end of 1915. By the autumn of 1914, the following candidates had been adopted to contest that election. Due to the outbreak of war, the election never took place.
- Unionist: Robert Cecil
- Liberal:
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | 9,828 | ||||
| Labour | Robert Green | 5,661 | |||
| Independent | George Humm | 722 | |||
| Majority | |||||
| Turnout | |||||
| Unionist hold | Swing | ||||
- Cecil was the endorsed candidate of the Coalition Government.