Before 1885 the city of
Birmingham, in the county of
Warwickshire, had been a three-member constituency (see
Birmingham (UK Parliament constituency) for further details). Under the
Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 the parliamentary borough of Birmingham was split into seven single-member divisions, one of which was Birmingham Central. It consisted of the wards of Market Hall, Ladywood, and St Thomas's.
In the 1918 redistribution of parliamentary seats, the
Representation of the People Act 1918 provided for twelve new Birmingham divisions. The Central division was abolished.
Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;