1967 Hamilton by-election

The Hamilton by-election in Hamilton, Lanarkshire, Scotland, was held on 2 November 1967. It was called after the former Labour MP, Tom Fraser, resigned in order to take up the position as head of the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board. The constituency had been a safe seat for Labour, who had taken over two-thirds of the vote there in every general election from 1945 to 1966, when only the Conservatives had stood against them.

1967 Hamilton by-election
2 November 1967
Hamilton parliamentary seat
  First party Second party Third party
 
Candidate Winnie Ewing Alexander Wilson Ian Dyer
Party SNP Labour Conservative
Popular vote 18,397 16,598 4,986
Percentage 46.0% 41.5% 12.5%
Swing 46.0% 29.7% 16.4%
MP before election

Tom Fraser
Labour

 Subsequent MP

Winnie Ewing
SNP

The election saw a surprise victory for the Scottish National Party candidate Winnie Ewing. The SNP took 46% of the vote in a constituency which they had not even contested at the 1966 general election held the previous year, and gained the seat from the Labour Party with a swing of nearly 38%. Ewing did not retain the seat at the following general election, but the SNP have been continuously represented in the House of Commons ever since.

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