United Kingdom general elections overview

United Kingdom general elections overview provides an overview of United Kingdom General Election results since 1922. This 1922 election was the first election in the new United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, after the Anglo-Irish War had led to the secession of the Irish Free State.

1979-2005

This twenty-six year period has seen just three prime ministers, with Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair the two longest serving post-World War II prime ministers [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4240165.stm Tony Blair's time in power] ] in the UK. There was also a mini-revival of the Liberal Party who, after a merger with the Social Democratic Party became the Liberal Democrats and increased their seats in parliament from 11 in the 1979 election to 62 by 2005.

Voter turnout also fell during this period, with the 2001 election seeing a post-World War Two low of 59.4% [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/past_elections/html/default.stm BBC summary of elections since 1945] ] . In Northern Ireland, the Good Friday Agreement has led to a vast reduction in conflict, though the moderate parties who gained power in the 1980s, such as the Ulster Unionist Party, have been replaced as the dominant powers by the likes of Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionist Party. The elections of the 1990s and 2000s also saw an increased proliferation of smaller parties, with more parties standing at the 2005 general election than ever before [ [http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/files/dms/Engaging_19456-14157__E__S__W__.pdf Electoral commission report on 2005 election] ] .

1922-1924

In the years after the secession of the Irish Free State, the Conservatives led the House of Commons, followed by a surging Labour Party and a declining Liberal Party. The Communist Party of Great Britain also enjoyed their most prologned period of success, though still failed to have more than 1 MP at any time.

ee also

* Elections in the United Kingdom

References

Category