The1939 Wells by-election was a parliamentaryby-election held for theBritish House of Commonsconstituency ofWells inSomerset on 13 December 1939. The seat had become vacant whenAnthony Muirhead, the constituency'sConservative PartyMember of Parliament had died on 29 October, aged 48. He had held the seat since the1929 general election. It was viewed as a significant turning point for politics in the local area.
The Conservative candidate,Lt. Colonel Dennis Boles,[1] was returned unopposed.[2]
This was the ninth election since the start ofWorld War II, when unopposed by-elections were common, since the major parties had agreed not to contest by-elections when vacancies arose in seats held by the other parties. Contests occurred only when independent candidates or minor parties chose to stand, and theCommon Wealth Party was formed in 1942 with the specific aim of contesting war-time by-elections.