United Kingdom general election, 1929
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The 1929 United Kingdom general election was held on 30 May 1929, and resulted in a hung parliament. It was the first of only three elections under universal suffrage in which a party lost the popular vote (i.e. gained fewer popular votes than some other party) but gained a plurality of seats (the others being 1951 and February 1974). In 1929 that party was Ramsay MacDonald's Labour, which won the most seats in the Commons for the first time ever but failed to get an overall majority. The Liberals led by David Lloyd George regained some of the ground they had lost in the 1924 election, and held the balance of power.
The election was often referred to as the "Flapper Election" in that it was the first election in which women over the age of 21 were allowed to vote, under the provisions of the Fifth Reform Act.
The election was fought against a background of rising unemployment with the memory of the 1926 General Strike still fresh in voters' minds. Foreign policy also took prominence in the campaign, with Austen Chamberlain's record as Foreign Secretary contributing to the Conservative defeat, as he was perceived as being "pro-French". By 1929 the Cabinet was being described by many as "old and exhausted".[1]
The Liberals campaigned on a comprehensive programme of public works under the title "We Can Conquer Unemployment". The Conservatives campaigned on the theme of "Safety First".
Results[edit]
| UK General Election 1929 |
|
Candidates |
Votes |
| Party |
Standing |
Elected |
Gained |
Unseated |
Net |
% of total |
% |
No. |
Net % |
| |
Conservative |
590 |
260 |
|
|
- 152 |
42.227 |
38.1 |
8,252,527 |
-8.7 |
| |
Labour |
569 |
287 |
|
|
+ 136 |
46.666 |
37.1 |
8,048,968 |
+3.8 |
| |
Liberal |
513 |
59 |
|
|
+ 19 |
9.593 |
23.6 |
5,104,638 |
+5.8 |
| |
Independent |
11 |
4 |
3 |
1 |
+ 2 |
0.650 |
0.4 |
94,742 |
+0.2 |
| |
Communist |
25 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
- 1 |
|
0.2 |
47,554 |
-0.1 |
| |
Independent Conservative |
8 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
|
0.2 |
46,278 |
|
| |
Scottish Prohibition |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
0.1 |
25,037 |
+0.1 |
| |
Nationalist (NI) |
4 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
+ 2 |
|
0.1 |
24,177 |
+0.1 |
| |
Independent Labour |
4 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
+ 1 |
|
0.1 |
20,825 |
+0.1 |
| |
Independent Liberal |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
0.1 |
17,110 |
+0.1 |
| |
National (Scotland) |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
0.0 |
3,313 |
N/A |
| |
Plaid Cymru |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
0.0 |
609 |
N/A |
Total votes cast: 21,685,779. Turnout 76.3%.[2] All parties shown. Conservatives include Ulster Unionists.
Votes summary[edit]
| Popular vote |
|
|
|
|
|
| Conservative |
|
38.06% |
| Labour |
|
37.12% |
| Liberal |
|
23.54% |
| Independent |
|
0.83% |
| Others |
|
0.46% |
Seats summary[edit]
| Parliamentary seats |
|
|
|
|
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| Conservative |
|
42.28% |
| Labour |
|
46.67% |
| Liberal |
|
9.59% |
| Independent |
|
0.81% |
| Others |
|
0.16% |
References[edit]
Further reading[edit]
- F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987
- Howell, David. MacDonald’s Party: Labour Identities and Crisis, 1922–1939 (Oxford, 2002)
- Redvaldsen, David. "'Today is the Dawn': The Labour Party and the 1929 General Election," Parliamentary History (2010) 29#3 pp 395-415.
- Williamson, Philip. "'Safety First': Baldwin, the Conservative Party and the 1929 General Election," Historical Journal (1982) 25: 385–409.
External links[edit]
See also[edit]
External links[edit]
