A by-election for the seat of Ascot in the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia was held on 13 November 1971. It was triggered by the death of Merv Toms, the serving Labor member and Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, on 8 October 1971.
Toms' death reduced Labor to a minority government, and David Brand, the opposition leader, threatened to bring on a motion of no confidence. Because of this, the premier, John Tonkin, controversially advised the governor, Sir Douglas Kendrew, to prorogue parliament until the by-election was held.[1] A loss for the Labor Party was considered high unlikely and did not eventuate, although the party did suffer a heavy negative swing of 22.4 points on first preferences. The winning candidate, Mal Bryce, polled 53.4 percent of the vote, while the Liberal candidate, Fred Chaney, polled 41.6 percent of the vote, despite the party not having contested the seat at the 1971 state election.