# Wandsworth (electoral division)

Wandsworth was an electoral division for the purposes of elections to the Greater London Council. The constituency elected four councillors for a three-year term in 1964, 1967 and 1970.

## History

It was planned to use the same boundaries as the Westminster Parliament constituencies for election of councillors to the Greater London Council (GLC), as had been the practice for elections to the predecessor London County Council, but those that existed in 1965 crossed the Greater London boundary. Until new constituencies could be settled, the 32 London boroughs were used as electoral areas which therefore created a constituency called Wandsworth.
The electoral division was replaced from 1973 by the single-member electoral divisions of Battersea North, Battersea South, Putney and Tooting.

## Elections

The Wandsworth constituency was used for the Greater London Council elections in 1964, 1967 and 1970. Four councillors were elected at each election using first-past-the-post voting.

### 1964 election

The first election was held on 9 April 1964, a year before the council came into its powers. The electorate was 223,185 and four Labour Party councillors were elected. With 102,915 people voting, the turnout was 46.1%. The councillors were elected for a three-year term.
1964 Greater London Council election: Wandsworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Mrs. M. C. Jay | 53,747 | | |
| | Labour | Norman George Mollett Prichard | 52,606 | | |
| | Labour | George Frederick Rowe | 51,857 | | |
| | Labour | Joseph Simeon Samuels | 51,292 | | |
| | Conservative | Miss M. Bowen | 37,459 | | |
| | Conservative | J. I. Tweedie-Smith | 37,292 | | |
| | Conservative | F. L. Abbott | 37,258 | | |
| | Conservative | D. Y. Fell | 36,776 | | |
| | Liberal | A. Cowen | 8,630 | | |
| | Liberal | R. A. Locke | 8,443 | | |
| | Liberal | M. E. Lawson | 7,897 | | |
| | Liberal | C. V. Gittins | 7,716 | | |
| | Communist | Mrs. G. M. Easton | 3,116 | | |
| | Communist | D. J. Welsh | 2,143 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | | | |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |

### 1967 election

The second election was held on 13 April 1967. The electorate was 216,167 and four Conservative Party councillors were elected. With 91,236 people voting, the turnout was 42.1%. The councillors were elected for a three-year term.
1967 Greater London Council election: Wandsworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes |
| | Conservative | Frank Lewis Abbott | 45,133 |
| | Conservative | Anthony Vincent Bradbury | 45,003 |
| | Conservative | William J. Shelton | 44,383 |
| | Conservative | Jack Elmer Swanson | 43,424 |
| | Labour | Mrs. M. C. Jay | 37,956 |
| | Labour | Joseph Simeon Samuels | 36,649 |
| | Labour | S. F. C. Sporle | 36,284 |
| | Labour | Norman G. M. Prichard | 31,672 |
| | Liberal | C. H. Pritchard | 11,319 |
| | Liberal | Mrs. E. K. Benest | 5,058 |
| | Liberal | D. J. A. Livingstone | 4,500 |
| | Liberal | Mrs. A. P. Uziell-Hamilton | 4,448 |
| | Communist | Mrs. G. M. Easton | 1,754 |
| | Commonwealth Party of Great Britain | T. A. Cox | 1,371 |
| | Communist | D. J. Welsh | 1,188 |
| | Independent | T. Lamb | 1,139 |
| | Independent | E. D. Larkin | 953 |
| | Commonwealth Party of Great Britain | P. A. Head | 634 |
| | Commonwealth Party of Great Britain | H. Petts | 619 |
| | Commonwealth Party of Great Britain | R. D. Wagenaar | 230 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing |

### 1970 election

The third election was held on 9 April 1970. The electorate was 223,189 and four Labour Party councillors were elected. With 83,107 people voting, the turnout was 37.2%. The councillors were elected for a three-year term.
1970 Greater London Council election: Wandsworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes |
| | Labour | Mrs. Marie Jenkins | 40,940 |
| | Labour | Sir Norman Prichard | 40,345 |
| | Labour | Mrs. Gladys Felicia Dimson | 40,330 |
| | Labour | Joseph Simeon Samuels | 40,097 |
| | Conservative | William Jeremy Masefield Shelton | 36,927 |
| | Conservative | Jack Elmer Swanson | 36,470 |
| | Conservative | W. T. O. Wallace | 36,307 |
| | Conservative | Frank Lewis Abbott | 36,140 |
| | Liberal | R. C. H. Boddington | 2,971 |
| | Liberal | D. J. Livingstone | 2,865 |
| | Liberal | J. P. Grisewood | 2,746 |
| | Liberal | M. Findley | 2,736 |
| | Communist | Mrs. M. G. Easton | 1,397 |
| | Homes before Roads | J. K. Sheppard | 1,127 |
| | Communist | D. J. Welsh | 1,098 |
| | Homes before Roads | J. Bottomley | 981 |
| | Homes before Roads | P. Whelan | 560 |
| | Homes before Roads | W. Konopka-Nowina | 508 |
| | Union Movement | G. R. Wren | 150 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing |

### 1972 by-election

A by-election was held on 15 June 1972, following the death of Sir Norman Prichard. The electorate was 216,934 and one Labour Party councillor was elected. With 39,699 voting, the turnout was 18.3%
Wandsworth by-election, 1972 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes |
| | Labour | Alexander McLaughlin | 26,537 |
| | Conservative | Mrs. L. Chalker | 12,767 |
| | Union Movement | D. R. Gerlach | 395 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing |