 Vivian got a chance to re-enter the House of Commons in 1911 when the Liberal MP for South Somerset, Sir Edward Strachey, was given a peerage, causing a by-election.Vivian was adopted as Liberal candidate.South Somerset had been a Liberal seat since its creation in 1885 and Strachey had been MP for the constituency since 1892 but the size of his majorities had been decreasing since 1906 and the Conservative candidate in the by-election, Aubrey Herbert, had the advantage of being known in the area, having been the candidate in both the general elections of 1910.