From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishby-electionˈby-eˌlection, bye-election noun [countable] especially British EnglishPPV a special election to replace a politician who has left parliament or died → general election
Examples from the Corpus
by-election• Shortly after the appearance of the article in Marxism Today, Labour lost a by-election in Greenwich.• If the Tories lose every by-election, the odds change.• Every by-election from now on must be a Labour or Lib Dem victory.• In March 1918 Nina Boyle, offering herself as a test case, announced that she would stand in the Keighley by-election.• He said the party has a good record in recent by-elections and he was confident this success could be repeated.• November's by-election was to a large extent a media circus.• This strategy must be explained clearly and positively to the public, and especially within by-election constituencies. 