Draft:George John Jones

George John Jones (24 January 1905 - 8 December 1960) was a prominent member of the Communist Party of Great Britain who in 1945 got more than 10,000 votes as a Communist candidate for Parliament.

Jones, often known by the nickname Jonah, was born in Ilford in 1905. He worked as a school teacher and lived in Crouch End in London. Initially a member of the Independent Labour Party, he joined the Communist Party in 1935. In the 1945 UK general election, he contested the seat of Hornsey, getting 10,058 votes, a 21% share of the vote, and coming third. This was the highest Communist vote in England in the 1945 election. It was the highest ever Communist vote in an English constituency, apart from Shapurji Saklatvala who, when standing in Battersea North in the early 1920s, had the advantage of Labour Party endorsement or of no Labour opponent.

Jones's large vote was seen as particularly remarkable as Hornsey was then one of the safest Conservative seats in the House of Commons. It was viewed within the party as a reflection of his outgoing personality and high local profile. Buoyed by his strong showing, Jones persuaded the party leadership that he should contest the Hornsey constituency in three subsequent elections but attracted many fewer votes. He also stood for Hornsey Borough Council and twice was a runner-up.

Jones died in December 1960; the Communist Party general secretary John Gollan delivered the funeral address.