| Country: | United Kingdom |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | University of Oxford Chancellor election, 1960 |
| Previous Year: | 1960 |
| Election Date: | 14 March 1987 |
| Next Election: | University of Oxford Chancellor election, 2003 |
| Next Year: | 2003 |
| Image1: | Roy Jenkins 1977 (cropped).jpg |
| Candidate1: | Roy Jenkins |
| Party1: | Social Democratic Party (UK) |
| Popular Vote1: | 3,249 |
| Percentage1: | 39.1% |
| Candidate2: | Lord Blake |
| Party2: | Conservative Party (UK) |
| Popular Vote2: | 2,674 |
| Percentage2: | 32.2% |
| Image4: | Golda Meir and Edward Heath cropped (cropped).jpg |
| Candidate4: | Edward Heath |
| Party4: | Conservative Party (UK) |
| Popular Vote4: | 2,348 |
| Percentage4: | 28.3% |
| Candidate5: | Mark Payne |
| Party5: | Independent (politician) |
| Popular Vote5: | 38 |
| Percentage5: | 0.5% |
| Chancellor | |
| Before Election: | Harold Macmillan |
| After Election: | Roy Jenkins |
The 1987 University of Oxford election for the position of Chancellor was called upon the death of the incumbent Chancellor, Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, on 29 December 1986.
The electorate consisted of all members of the University holding the rank of MA. Votes had to be cast in person at Oxford in academic dress. The election was by first past the post. To stand a candidate had to be nominated by two electors.
The forthcoming election generated much interest, and several names were raised in the press as potential candidates, including:[1]
All of the above had been educated at Oxford, apart from Lords Callaghan and Carrington.[1]
A notable feature of the election was the decision of the university establishment not to agree a preferred candidate in advance, thus increasing the possibility of a long list of candidates being nominated.[2]
Eventually four candidates were nominated:
The election attracted huge levels of publicity, at times likened to a parliamentary by-election.[3] Much of the attention focused upon the Jenkins and Heath campaigns, whilst Blake was seen as a non-political candidate. Payne was regarded as an outsider.
Much attention was focused on the issue of government funding for universities, with Oxford facing the effects of cuts in its funding, leading to several chairs being left unfilled.[4]
The requirement for those voting to do so in academic dress resulted in the local tailor selling out. One tactic of the supporters of Jenkins was to lend gowns to voters lacking them.
Polling ran until 14 March 1987. The results were as follows:[5]
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roy Jenkins | 3,249 | 39.1 | |
| Lord Blake | 2,674 | 32.2 | |
| Edward Heath | 2,348 | 28.3 | |
| Mark Payne | 38 | 0.5 | |
| Turnout | 8,309 | ||