Swansea (UK Parliament constituency)

After the turn of the century, labour candidates began to make an impact in municipal elections in Swansea, drawing support from the dockers as well as the miners and tin-platers, but this did not lead to a serious parliamentary challenge to the Liberals until after the First World War.

On 1 June a joint meeting of the Swansea Conservative and Liberal Unionist associations resolved to nominate F. Ormesby-Gore as the candidate in the forthcoming election.

[5] Shortly after Dillwyn's death, Ormesby-Gore withdrew and the Conservatives selected his nephew, Sir John Llewelyn as their candidate.

[6] Llewelyn was commonly regarded as being the strongest candidate available to the Conservatives but due to the family connection he was unable to contest Swansea Town.

[6] At his adoption meeting, Burnie declared himself sternly in favour of disestablishment, reflecting the views of his predecessor, but also expressed strong support for Home Rule for Wales as well as Ireland, thus placing himself firmly in the Cymru Fydd camp.

[6] Burnie was another local industrialist whose somewhat advanced views on social questions made him popular with the labour element but somewhat suspect amongst his colleagues.

[7] Burnie was a casualty of the 1895 election when he was defeated by Sir John Dillwyn-Llewelyn, Bt, a prominent local Conservative and one of the few non-Liberals to be elevated to the aldermanic bench on Glamorgan County Council.