The seat had become vacant when the constituency's Conservative Member of Parliament (MP), Sir James Agg-Gardner, had died on 9 August 1928, aged 81.
The Liberal Party selected 63-year old Sir John Brunner, a political veteran who had been MP for three previous constituencies, most recently Southport from 1923 to 1924.
[citation needed] The Conservative Party candidate was 53-year old Sir Walter Preston, who had been MP for Mile End from 1918 to 1923.
[citation needed] Preston held the seat for the Conservatives with a comfortable majority of 3,760 votes over Brunner.
Widdowson unsuccessfully contested the Rushcliffe constituency in Nottingham in 1929 and again in 1931, the later time under her married name of Florence Paton.