Parliamentary by-election happens when a seat in the House of Commons becomes vacant between general elections, whether the sitting MP dies, resigns, goes bankrupt, is convicted of a crime or is subject to a recall petition. Whatever the circumstances, by-elections have long provided some the most dramatic moments in British parliamentary history.
In this latest volume of political essays, Iain Dale picks the most consequential by-elections of the modern era and presents a series of thoroughly researched, and absorbing essays by some of the finest political writers working today.
