1952 Dundee East by-election
The Dundee East by-election was held on 17 July 1952, due to the death in a road accident of the incumbent Labour MP, Thomas Cook. It was won by the Labour candidate George Thomson. Background Thomas Cook had been an MP for Dundee East since its creation in 1950, having previously represented the old two-member Dundee seat. On 31 May 1952 he was travelling between Arbroath and Dundee when his car left the road, struck a tree and went over a low wall in to a field, killing him instantly. Reporting Cook's death, The Glasgow Herald speculated that Labour should fairly safely hold the seat in the by-election to follow, arguing that while until October 1951 the seat might have been considered marginal, Cook's holding of it against a strong campaign suggested that the seat could now be considered a safe one for Labour. However the newspaper opined that the strength of Labour's majority would give some indication as to the extent of the "alleged unpopularity" of the Conservative Government. Candidates Labour selected 31 year old George Morgan Thomson, who was originally from nearby Monifieth and had been educated at Broughty Ferry's Grove Academy. The Dundee Unionist and Liberal National