The 1969 Swindon by-election of 30 October 1969 was held after Labour Member of Parliament (MP) Francis Noel-Baker resigned from the House of Commons.
The Conservatives, who had come second at the last election, chose Christopher Ward, a solicitor and member of Berkshire County Council.
While they held the other four seats, with the exception of Glasgow Gorbals, none of them was a comfortable hold, with Labour's majorities being significantly reduced by the Conservatives.
[4] A report in the following day's The Glasgow Herald argued the Liberal Party's "big challenge" in Swindon "possibly contributed to Labour's defeat", but also blamed "the Government's neglect of the constituency, having left it vacant since February.
"[4] At the following year's general election, Stoddart stood again as Labour's candidate and this time defeated Ward with a majority of 5,576 votes.