University of Wales By-election, 1943
Prior to 1950, universities could elect and return representatives to the UK parliament. In 1943 Lewis contested the University of Wales parliamentary seat at a by-election, his opponent was former Plaid Genedlaethol Cymru deputy vice-president Dr. William John Gruffydd. Gruffydd had voiced doubts about Lewis' ideas since 1933, and by 1943 he had joined the Liberal party. The "brilliant but wayward" Gruffydd was a favorite with Welsh-speaking intellectuals and drew 52.3 per cent of the vote, to Lewis' 22 per cent, or 1,330 votes.
The election effectively split the Welsh-speaking intelligentsia, and left Lewis embittered with politics and retreated from direct political involvement. However, the experience proved invaluable for Plaid Cymru, as they began to refer to themselves, as "for the first time they were taken seriously as a political force. " The by-election campaign led directly to "considerable growth" for the party's membership.
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