Birmingham Stechford by-election, 1977

The Birmingham Stechford by-election, in Birmingham, on 31 March 1977 was held after Labour Member of Parliament (MP) Roy Jenkins resigned his seat following his appointment as President of the European Commission. A seat that had been solidly Labour since its formation in 1950, it was won by Andrew MacKay of the Conservative Party, before being regained by Labour in 1979. The by-election was noted for the strong performance of the National Front candidate and the presence of two far left candidates.

As a leading Labour sitting MP Roy Jenkins had hoped to become Foreign Secretary in the government of James Callaghan but was overlooked in favour of Anthony Crosland. Following this Jenkins was nominated as President of the European Commission in succession to François-Xavier Ortoli, a move which necessitated his departure from Parliament.

With the seat being solid Labour Party territory the by-election presented the possibility of a return to Parliament for Terry Davis, who had served as member for the defunct Bromsgrove seat from 1970 until its abolition in 1974. Davis however failed to take the seat and began a pattern for the ailing Labour government who also lost the next by-election in Ashfield when David Marquand followed Jenkins to a role in the Commission.

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