# 2012 Croydon North by-election

On 29 November 2012, a by-election was held for the UK House of Commons constituency of Croydon North in the London Borough of Croydon. The by-election was caused by the death of its Member of Parliament Malcolm Wicks. It took place on the same day as by-elections in Middlesbrough and Rotherham. The by-election was won by Steve Reed of the Labour Party.

## Boundaries

The constituency covers the north west of the London Borough of Croydon and includes Thornton Heath, Norbury, Selhurst and parts of South and Upper Norwood. It is made up of eight electoral wards from the borough:
* Bensham Manor, Broad Green, Norbury, Selhurst, South Norwood, Thornton Heath, Upper Norwood, and West Thornton
Croydon's three constituencies are contiguous with the boundaries of the London Borough of Croydon. Croydon North borders the seats of Carshalton and Wallington, Mitcham and Morden, Streatham, Dulwich and West Norwood, Lewisham West and Penge, Beckenham, Croydon Central, and Croydon South.

## Result

Croydon Borough Council released the statement of persons nominated on 14 November. This confirmed 12 candidates would contest the election. The electorate was said to be around 104,000.
Charity worker and social entrepreneur Andrew Stranack, who has cerebral palsy, was the Conservative Party candidate.
On 17 October 2012, IT professional and former London Borough of Islington Councillor Marisha Ray was selected as the prospective Liberal Democrats candidate.
On 25 October, the Green Party chose local campaigner Shasha Khan, dubbed by local reporters as 'Croydon's Green Knight'.
Winston McKenzie, a perennial election candidate who stood for UKIP in Tottenham, was an independent candidate at the 2003 Brent East by-election, a Veritas Party nominee at Croydon North in 2005, and an independent candidate for London Mayor was chosen as the prospective candidate for the UK Independence Party.
On 29 October, the Chair of the London Race and Criminal Justice Consortium and a former Senior Policy Advisor to the then Mayor of London Ken Livingstone, Lee Jasper, was selected as the candidate for the Respect Party.
On 17 October, the National Front confirmed their prospective candidate to be the former British National Party Deputy Chairman and engineer Richard Edmonds.
On 3 November 2012, former children's book publisher and current Leader of London Borough of Lambeth Council, councillor Steve Reed was chosen to be the Labour candidate after a closely fought battle with London Assembly member Val Shawcross.
2012 Croydon North by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Steve Reed | 15,892 | 64.7 | +8.7 |
| | Conservative | Andrew Stranack | 4,137 | 16.8 | −7.3 |
| | UKIP | Winston McKenzie | 1,400 | 5.7 | +4.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Marisha Ray | 860 | 3.5 | −10.5 |
| | Green | Shasha Khan | 855 | 3.5 | +1.5 |
| | Respect | Lee Jasper | 707 | 2.9 | +2.4 |
| | CPA | Stephen Hammond | 192 | 0.8 | New |
| | National Front | Richard Edmonds | 161 | 0.7 | New |
| | Communist | Ben Stevenson | 119 | 0.5 | +0.2 |
| | Monster Raving Loony | John Cartwright | 110 | 0.4 | New |
| | Nine Eleven Was An Inside Job | Simon Lane | 66 | 0.3 | New |
| | Young People's | Robin Smith | 63 | 0.3 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,755 | 47.9 | +16.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 24,562 | 26.5 | −34.1 |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 112 | 0.1 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 93,036 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +8.0 | |

## Previous result

General election 2010: Croydon North :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Malcolm Wicks | 28,947 | 56.0 | +2.4 |
| | Conservative | Jason Hadden | 12,466 | 24.1 | +1.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Gerry Jerome | 7,226 | 14.0 | −3.2 |
| | Green | Shasha Khan | 1,017 | 2.0 | −0.9 |
| | UKIP | Jonathan Serter | 891 | 1.7 | 0.0 |
| | Christian | Novlette Williams | 586 | 1.1 | New |
| | Respect | Mohommad Shaikh | 272 | 0.5 | New |
| | Communist | Ben Stevenson | 160 | 0.3 | New |
| | Independent | Mohamed Seyed | 111 | 0.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 16,481 | 31.9 | +0.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 51,676 | 60.6 | +8.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 85,216 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +0.3 | |