What Happens At By-elections?

By-elections happen when sitting MPs die or retires from the Commons before parliament is dissolved. They may also take place if the High Court rules that the election law has been broken, though this is a very unusual event.

Once a by-election has been called, the same procedural rules apply as in a general election, with the exceptions that candidates are allowed a higher rate of expenses. Recent trends show that governments find it very hard to maintain support in by-elections as many voters use this opportunity to register a protest vote. They can do this, generally speaking, knowing that this will not mean defeat for the government since only one seat is at stake. Recent by-elections have been used by voters in the constituency concerned to launch a protest vote against Labour for the government's decision to go to war in Iraq, for instance. In other circumstances, they can provide a useful gauge as to the popularity of each party during mid term.