92-634: Birmingham Ladywood is a constituency in the city of Birmingham that was created in 1918. The seat has been represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom by Shabana Mahmood of the Labour Party since 2010 . Mahmood currently serves as Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice under the government of Keir Starmer . The constituency includes
184-484: A by-election six months earlier. They failed to retain their other seat gained in a by-election , Rochester and Strood , and the party's leader, Nigel Farage , ran in South Thanet but narrowly fell short of winning the seat. The Green Party of England and Wales won its highest ever vote share of 3.8 per cent, and their only MP, Caroline Lucas , retained her seat, Brighton Pavilion . In Northern Ireland ,
276-516: A BBC article and others. Labour, in reaction, produced ever stronger denials that they would co-operate with the SNP after the election. The Conservatives and Lib Dems both also rejected the idea of a coalition with the SNP. This was particularly notable for Labour, to whom the SNP had previously offered support: their manifesto stated that "the SNP will never put the Tories into power. Instead, if there
368-420: A few cases one). From 1535 each Welsh county and borough was represented, by one knight or burgess. The franchise was restricted differently in different types of constituency; in county constituencies forty shilling freeholders (i.e. landowners) could vote, while in boroughs the franchise varied from potwallopers , giving many residents votes, to rotten boroughs with hardly any voters. A county borough
460-697: A form or degree of mixed-member proportional representation . The existing constituencies were created, effectively, for the first general election of the Scottish Parliament, in 1999. When created, all but two had the names and boundaries of Westminster constituencies. The two exceptions were the Orkney Holyrood constituency , covering the Orkney Islands council area , and the Shetland Holyrood constituency , covering
552-644: A general election to be held at a tactically convenient time within the final two years of a Parliament's lifespan, to maximise the chance of an electoral victory for their party. Prior to the 2010 general election, Labour and the Liberal Democrats pledged to introduce fixed-term elections . As part of the Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition agreement, the Cameron ministry agreed to support legislation for fixed-term Parliaments, with
644-448: A mental hospital or a fugitive on the date of the election were permitted to vote. In British general elections, voting takes place in all constituencies in the United Kingdom to elect Members of Parliament to the House of Commons , the lower house of Parliament in the UK. Each constituency elects one MP using the first-past-the-post voting system . If one party obtains a majority (326) of
736-448: A more suitable label cannot be found. Where used, "The compass point reference used will generally form a prefix in cases where the rest of the constituency name refers to the county area or a local council, but a suffix where the rest of the name refers to a population centre." This is the reason for the difference in naming between, for example, North Shropshire (a county constituency ) and Reading West (a borough constituency ). In
828-517: A nine-year domination of Scottish Westminster seats. Charles Kennedy , who served as the leader of the Liberal Democrats from 1999 to 2006, made his last public appearance during the election campaign, in which he lost his seat; he died on 1 June 2015. Notable MPs who retired at this election included former prime minister and Labour leader Gordon Brown , former Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling , former leader of
920-608: A number of single-member first-past-the Post constituencies, matching the way Westminster MPs are elected. Following the decision that all MEPs should be elected by some form of proportional representation , the Labour government passed the European Parliamentary Elections Act 1999 , creating eleven constituencies on Great Britain, which were first used in 1999 . The South West England constituency
1012-562: A referendum. The referendum was held in May 2011 and resulted in the retention of the existing voting system. Before the previous general election the Liberal Democrats had pledged to change the voting system, and the Labour Party had pledged to hold a referendum on any such change. The Conservatives, however, promised to keep the first-past-the-post system, but to reduce the number of constituencies to 600. Liberal Democrats' plan
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#17327729844191104-484: A rise in multi-party politics, with increased support for UKIP, the SNP and the Greens. Britain faces a simple and inescapable choice – stability and strong Government with me, or chaos with Ed Miliband: https://facebook.com/DavidCameronOfficial/posts/979082725449379 The question of what the different parties would do in the likely event of an inconclusive result dominated much of the campaign. Smaller parties focused on
1196-464: A second consecutive hung parliament whose composition would be similar to the one elected at the previous general election in 2010 . Potential coalitions and agreements between parties were intensively discussed; as a result, smaller parties received much more attention during the campaign than in previous UK elections. However, opinion polls underestimated the Conservatives, as they won 330 of
1288-486: A second referendum and the Conservative manifesto stated that "the question of Scotland's place in the United Kingdom is now settled". In the run-up to the election, David Cameron coined the phrase "Carlisle principle" for the idea that checks and balances are required to ensure that devolution to Scotland has no adverse effects on other parts of the United Kingdom. The phrase references a fear that Carlisle , being
1380-607: A special leaflet headed "A word to the Ladies" and holding two meetings in the afternoon. Clare Short, elected as a Labour MP from the 1983 general election onwards, resigned the Labour whip on 20 October 2006 and wished it to be known that she would continue to sit in the Commons as an independent MP. 52°29′N 1°53′W / 52.48°N 1.89°W / 52.48; -1.89 United Kingdom constituencies In
1472-512: Is Shabana Mahmood , one of the UK's first three female Muslim MPs. The first campaign for this constituency in 1918 was notable because the Liberal Party candidate was Mrs Margery Corbett Ashby , one of only seventeen women candidates to contest a parliamentary election at the first opportunity. Chamberlain reacted to this intervention by being one of the few male candidates to specifically target women voters; deploying his wife, issuing
1564-463: Is an anti-Tory majority after the election, we will offer to work with other parties to keep the Tories out". SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon later confirmed in the Scottish leaders' debate on STV that she was prepared to "help make Ed Miliband prime minister". However, on 26 April, Miliband ruled out a confidence and supply arrangement with the SNP too. Miliband's comments suggested to many that he
1656-687: Is in the Holyrood area of Edinburgh , while the main meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom is the Palace of Westminster , in the City of Westminster . There are 73 Holyrood constituencies covering Scotland , and each elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first-past-the-post system . Also, the constituencies are grouped into eight electoral regions, and each of these regions elects seven additional members , to produce
1748-526: The 2005 United Kingdom general election , the House of Commons had 646 constituencies covering the whole of the United Kingdom. This rose to 650 in the 2010 election following the Fifth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies . Each constituency elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the " first-past-the-post " system of election. The House of Commons is one of the two chambers of
1840-621: The Acts of Union 1707 , Scottish burghs were grouped into districts of burghs in the Parliament of Great Britain , except that Edinburgh was a constituency in its own right . After the Acts of Union 1800 , smaller Irish boroughs were disenfranchised, while most others returned only one MP to the United Kingdom Parliament. The Reform Act 1832 reduced the number of parliamentary boroughs in England and Wales by eliminating
1932-713: The Conservative Party planned for the number of constituencies to be reduced from 650 to 600, through the Sixth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies under the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011 , the review of constituencies and reduction in seats was delayed by the Electoral Registration and Administration Act 2013 . The next boundary review was set to take place in 2018, so
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#17327729844192024-638: The Democratic Unionist Party remained the largest party, the Ulster Unionist Party returned to the Commons with two seats after a five-year absence, and the Alliance Party lost its only seat of Belfast East , represented by Naomi Long for the party, despite an increase in their vote share. Following the election, Miliband and Clegg resigned their leaderships. Jeremy Corbyn succeeded Miliband as Leader of
2116-696: The European Parliament , prior to the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union (see European Parliament constituency ). In local government elections (other than for the London Assembly) electoral areas are called wards or electoral divisions . House of Commons, Scottish Parliament, Senedd and Northern Ireland Assembly constituencies are designated as either county or borough constituencies, except that in Scotland
2208-524: The House of Commons . The Conservative Party , led by prime minister David Cameron , won a unexpected majority victory of ten seats; they had been leading a coalition government with the Liberal Democrats . It was the last general election to be held before the UK voted to leave the European Union (EU) in June 2016. Opinion polls and political commentators had wildly predicted that the election would result in
2300-507: The Liberal Democrats , Nick Clegg , warned against a potential 'Blukip' coalition (Conservatives, UKIP and by extension the DUP) with a spoof website highlighting imaginary policies from this prospective coalition, such as reinstating the death penalty , scrapping all benefits for under-25s and charging for hospital visits. Additionally, issues were raised about the continued existence of the BBC , as
2392-508: The Scottish National Party (SNP) who enjoyed a huge surge, winning 56 of the 59 Scottish seats, becoming the third-largest party in the House of Commons and the largest party in Scotland, knocking Labour from the status which it had held since 1964 . The Liberal Democrats , junior coalition partners led by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg , suffered heavy losses, losing 49 of their 57 seats. Returning just eight MPs, it
2484-531: The Scottish Parliament (Constituencies) Act 2004 , which enabled the creation of a new set of Westminster constituencies without change to Holyrood constituencies. The new Westminster boundaries became effective for the 2005 United Kingdom general election . There are 40 Senedd constituencies covering Wales , and each elects one Member of the Senedd (MS) by the first-past-the-post system . Also,
2576-580: The Shetland Islands council area . For Westminster elections, these council areas were covered (and still are covered) by the Orkney and Shetland Westminster constituency . In 1999, under the Scotland Act 1998 , the expectation was that there would be a permanent link between the boundaries of Holyrood constituencies and those of Westminster constituencies. This link was broken, however, by
2668-711: The Traditional Unionist Voice , who won no seats at this election but had one member of the Northern Ireland Assembly, the Conservatives and UKIP (both are major parties in the rest of the UK, but are minor parties here). Smaller parties in Scotland include the Scottish Libertarian Party , but none of the smaller parties make much of an impact in general elections in Scotland. Wales has a number of smaller parties which, again, do not tend to make much impact in
2760-513: The United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons . Within the United Kingdom there are five bodies with members elected by electoral districts called " constituencies " as opposed to " wards ": Between 1921 and 1973 the following body also included members elected by constituencies: Electoral areas called constituencies were previously used in elections to
2852-546: The bicameral Parliament of the United Kingdom , the other being the House of Lords . There are fourteen London Assembly constituencies covering the Greater London area, and each constituency elects one member of the assembly by the first-past-the-post system . Eleven additional members are elected from Greater London as a whole to produce a form or degree of mixed-member proportional representation . Constituency names and boundaries remain now as they were for
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2944-498: The first general election of the assembly, in 2000. The assembly is part of the Greater London Authority and general elections of the assembly are held at the same time as election of the mayor of London . There are 18 Northern Ireland Assembly Constituencies : four borough (for Belfast ) and 14 county constituencies elsewhere (see below). Each elects five MLAs to the 90 member NI Assembly by means of
3036-478: The mayor of London , returned to Parliament as MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip . It was the first of three general elections to be held under the rules of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 . Local elections took place in most areas of England on the same day and is to date the most recent general election to coincide with local elections. The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 led to
3128-424: The single transferable vote system. Assembly Constituency boundaries are identical to their House of Commons equivalents. The constituencies below are not used for the election of members to the 11 district councils . Scottish Parliament constituencies are sometimes called Holyrood constituencies, to distinguish them from Westminster (House of Commons) constituencies. The Scottish Parliament Building
3220-547: The 100 days before Parliament's dissolution on 30 March: £30,700, plus a per-voter allowance of 9p in county constituencies and 6p in borough seats. An additional voter allowance of more than £8,700 is available after the dissolution of Parliament. In total, parties spent £31.1m in the 2010 general election, of which the Conservative Party spent 53%, the Labour Party spent 25% and the Liberal Democrats 15%. This
3312-581: The 2015 general election was contested using the same constituencies and boundaries as in 2010. Of the 650 constituencies, 533 were in England, 59 were in Scotland, 40 were in Wales and 18 were in Northern Ireland. In addition, the 2011 Act mandated a referendum in 2011 on changing from the first-past-the-post voting system to an alternative vote system for general elections. The Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition government agreed to holding
3404-417: The 650 seats and 36.9 per cent of the vote, giving them a small overall majority. The opposition Labour Party , led by Ed Miliband , saw a small increase in its share of the vote to 30.4 per cent, but it won 26 fewer seats than in 2010, giving them 232 MPs. This was the fewest seats the party had won since the 1987 general election , when it had 229 MPs returned. Labour lost significant ground in Scotland to
3496-491: The 650 seats, then that party is entitled to form the government . If no party has a majority, then there is what is known as a hung parliament . In this case, the options for forming the Government are either a minority government (where one party governs alone despite not having the majority of the seats) or a coalition government (where one party governs alongside party in order to get a majority of seats). Although
3588-559: The Boundary Commissions for England , Wales , Scotland and Northern Ireland the power to create names for constituencies, and does not provide a set of statutory guidelines for the Commissions to follow in doing so. Constituency names are geographic, and "should normally reflect the main population centre(s) contained in the constituency". Compass points are used to distinguish constituencies from each other when
3680-485: The Conservatives, with several parties, notably the SNP, having committed to preventing a Conservative government. The Conservatives claimed a hung parliament with Labour as the largest party would result in a "coalition of chaos", and David Cameron tweeted that the electoral choice was one between " stable and strong government with me, or chaos with Ed Miliband ". Due to the substantial political turmoil in Britain in
3772-469: The DUP joining UKIP in this arrangement. UKIP and the DUP said they would work together in Parliament. The DUP welcomed the possibility of a hung parliament and the influence that this would bring them. The party's deputy leader, Nigel Dodds , said they could work with the Conservatives or Labour, but that they were "not interested in a full-blown coalition government". Their leader, Peter Robinson , said that
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3864-743: The DUP would not stand candidates in Fermanagh and South Tyrone (where Michelle Gildernew , the Sinn Féin candidate, won by only four votes in 2010) and in Newry and Armagh . In return the UUP would stand aside in Belfast East and Belfast North . The SDLP rejected a similar pact suggested by Sinn Féin to try to ensure that an agreed nationalist would win that constituency. The DUP also called on voters in Scotland to support whichever pro-Union candidate
3956-443: The DUP would talk first to whichever party wins the most seats. The DUP said they wanted, for their support, a commitment to 2% defence spending, a referendum on EU membership, and a reversal of the under-occupation penalty . They opposed the SNP being involved in government. The UUP also indicated that they would not work with the SNP if it wanted another independence referendum in Scotland. The Deputy Prime Minister and leader of
4048-553: The English town closest to the Scottish border, could be affected economically by preferential tax rates in Scotland . The deficit, who was responsible for it and plans to deal with it were a major theme of the campaign. While some smaller parties opposed austerity, the Conservatives, Labour, Liberal Democrats, UKIP and the Greens all supported some further cuts, albeit to different extents. Conservative campaigning sought to blame
4140-477: The European Union by the end of 2017". Labour did not support this, but did commit to an EU membership referendum if any further powers were transferred to the European Union. The Lib Dems also supported the Labour position, but explicitly supported the UK's continuing membership of the EU. The election was the first following the 2014 Scottish independence referendum . None of the three major party manifestos supported
4232-428: The Labour Party , while Tim Farron succeeded Clegg as Leader of the Liberal Democrats . Despite speculation before the election that it would herald a new era of multi-party politics in the UK, it ended-up being the antithesis, marking a return to traditional two-party politics seen throughout the second half of the 20th century; Conservative–Labour domination would continue until the 2024 election . The SNP began
4324-412: The Labour Party had been the two biggest parties since 1922 . Every prime minister to serve since 1935 had been the leader of the Conservatives or Labour. Opinion polls had predicted that the two parties would receive a combined total of anywhere between 65% and 75% of votes, and would receive anywhere between 80% and 85% of the seats; and that, as such, the leader of one of the two parties would become
4416-480: The Prime Minister ( David Cameron of the Conservatives or Ed Miliband of Labour) after the election. The Liberal Democrats had been the third largest party in the UK for many years; but as described by various political commentators, other parties had risen relative to the Liberal Democrats since the 2010 election. In order to emphasise this, The Economist stated that "the familiar three-party system of
4508-535: The Scottish Conservatives, asked about a deal with UKIP in the Scottish leaders' debate, replied: "No deals with UKIP." She continued that her preference and the Prime Minister's preference in a hung parliament was for a minority Conservative government. UKIP said they could have supported a minority Conservative government through a confidence and supply arrangement in return for a referendum on EU membership before Christmas 2015. They also spoke of
4600-472: The Second World War , but as the outgoing Government were a coalition and opinion polls were not showing a large or consistent lead for any one party, it was widely expected and predicted throughout the election campaign that no party would gain an overall majority, which could have led to a new coalition or other arrangements such as confidence and supply agreements. This was also associated with
4692-610: The Tories, Labour, and the Lib Dems appears to be breaking down with the rise of UKIP, the Greens and the SNP." Ofcom ruled that the major parties in Great Britain were the Conservatives, Labour, the Liberal Democrats and UKIP, the SNP a major party in Scotland, and Plaid Cymru a major party in Wales. The BBC 's guidelines were similar but removed UKIP from their list of major parties, and instead stated that UKIP should be given "appropriate levels of coverage in output to which
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#17327729844194784-475: The United Kingdom elected its Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) through twelve multimember European Parliament constituencies . One, Northern Ireland , used single transferable vote , while the eleven covering Great Britain used the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation . For its first European Parliamentary elections in 1979 Great Britain was divided into
4876-665: The West Midlands as a whole). The average house price in Ladywood is just under £155,000, much lower than the national average of just over £288,000. The constituency has undergone several boundary changes since its creation in 1918 but has remained a safe Labour seat since the Second World War , with the exception of a by-election in 1969 when Wallace Lawler won the seat for the Liberal Party and
4968-562: The advice of the prime minister. Under the provisions of the Septennial Act 1715 , as amended by the Parliament Act 1911 , an election had to be announced on or before the fifth anniversary of the beginning of the previous parliament, barring exceptional circumstances. No sovereign had refused a request for dissolution since the beginning of the 20th century, and the practice had evolved that a prime minister would typically call
5060-601: The areas of Ladywood, Nechells, Bordesley & Highgate and Soho & Jewellery Quarter. The area is one of the most multicultural in Birmingham and the whole of the United Kingdom; in the 1991 census, 55.6% of the constituency population were ethnic minorities , the highest in England at the time. In the recession of 2008–09, it was the first place in the UK where the unemployment claimant count rate exceeded 10%, breaching that level in January 2009. In July 2008, Ladywood had
5152-720: The boundaries to take into account the revised ward structure in the City of Birmingham with effect from May 2018, the Aston ward was transferred to Birmingham Perry Barr and the North Edgbaston ward to Birmingham Edgbaston , offset by the gain of the Balsall Heath West ward from Birmingham Hall Green and the Alum Rock ward from Birmingham Hodge Hill . Birmingham Ladywood includes Birmingham City Centre along with
5244-425: The constituencies are grouped into five electoral regions, and each of these regions elects four additional members , to produce a form or degree of mixed-member proportional representation . The current set of Senedd constituencies is the second to be created. The first was created for the first general election of the National Assembly for Wales, in 1999. Before its withdrawal from the European Union in 2020,
5336-456: The council. The spending limits for election campaigns are different in the two, the reasoning being that candidates in county constituencies tend to need to travel farther. For by-elections to any of these bodies, the limit in all constituencies is £100,000. In the House of Commons of England , each English county elected two " knights of the shire " while each enfranchised borough elected "burgesses" (usually two, sometimes four, and in
5428-468: The country, are listed below in order of the number of seats that they contested: Dozens of minor parties stood in this election. The Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition stood 135 candidates and was the only minor party to have more than forty candidates. The Respect Party , who came into the election with one MP who was elected at the 2012 Bradford West by-election , stood four candidates. The British National Party , who finished fifth with 1.9% of
5520-431: The date of the next general election being 7 May 2015. This resulted in the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011, which removed the prime minister's power to advise the monarch to call an early election. The Act only permits an early dissolution if Parliament votes for one by a two-thirds supermajority , or if a majority of MPs pass a vote of no confidence and no new government is subsequently formed within 14 days. However,
5612-407: The deficit on the previous Labour government. Labour, in return, sought to establish their fiscal responsibility. With the Conservatives also making several spending commitments (e.g., on the NHS), commentators talked of the two main parties' "political crossdressing", each trying to campaign on the other's traditional territory. Hung parliaments have been unusual in British political history since
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#17327729844195704-404: The dissolution of the 55th Parliament on 30 March 2015 and the scheduling of the election on 7 May. There were local elections on the same day in all of England, with the exception of Greater London . No elections were scheduled to take place in Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland. All British, Irish, and Commonwealth citizens over the age of 18 and residing in the UK who were not in prison or
5796-496: The distinction; the Boundary Commission for England has stated that, "as a general principle, where constituencies contain more than a small rural element they should normally be designated as county constituencies. Otherwise they should be designated as borough constituencies." In Scotland, all House of Commons constituencies are county constituencies except those in the cities of Glasgow , Edinburgh , Aberdeen , Dundee and three urban areas of Lanarkshire . In England and Wales,
5888-420: The election, the Conservatives decided to target Lib Dem seats as well as defending their own seats and targeting Conservative–Labour marginals, which ultimately contributed to their victory. In 2015 David Cameron launched the Conservative formal campaign in Chippenham on 30 March. Throughout the campaign the Conservatives played on fears of a Labour–SNP coalition following the Scottish independence referendum
5980-1193: The entirety of Birmingham City Centre ( Ladywood ward), as well as Aston , Nechells and Soho which (based on the indices of Multiple Deprivation) are the city wards of highest deprivation. Aston University is within the seat, as is St Andrews, the home of and Birmingham City Football Club . 1918–1950 : The County Borough of Birmingham wards of Ladywood and Rotton Park. 1950–1955 : The County Borough of Birmingham wards of All Saints', Ladywood, and Rotton Park. 1955–1974 : The County Borough of Birmingham wards of Duddeston, Ladywood, and St Paul's. 1974–1983 : The County Borough of Birmingham wards of All Saints', Ladywood, Rotton Park, and Soho. 1983–1997 : The City of Birmingham wards of Ladywood, Sandwell, and Soho. 1997–2010 : The City of Birmingham wards of Aston, Ladywood, Nechells, and Soho. 2010–2024 : The City of Birmingham wards of Aston, Ladywood, North Edgbaston, Nechells, Bordesley & Highgate, and Soho & Jewellery Quarter. 2024–present : The City of Birmingham wards of Alum Rock; Balsall Heath West; Bordesley & Highgate; Bordesley Green; Ladywood; Nechells; Newtown; Soho & Jewellery Quarter. After adjusting
6072-429: The general elections. In 2015, the Labour Party continued to dominate Welsh politics at the general elections. Coalitions have been rare in the United Kingdom, because the system of first-past-the-post voting has usually led to one party winning an overall majority in the Commons. However, with the outgoing Government being a coalition and with opinion polls not showing a large or consistent lead for any one party, there
6164-465: The highest unemployment rate in the whole of the West Midlands (by the international standardised measure, which is usually higher than the claimant count) at just over 18%, compared with neighbouring Birmingham seats Perry Barr (8.1%), Sparkbrook and Small Heath (13.9%), and Yardley (7%). For the year ending September 2014, the unemployment rate was 12.4%, although the employment rate had increased only slightly, from 46.1% to 46.6% (compared with 69.7% for
6256-430: The immediately surrounding period when its majority was marginal . The seat was regained for Labour by Doris Fisher at the 1970 general election . The 2015 general election result made the seat the sixth-safest of Labour's 232 seats by percentage of majority. The constituency's first MP was the future Conservative Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain , who transferred to the Edgbaston seat in 1929. The current MP
6348-523: The largest parties contribute and, on some occasions, similar levels of coverage". Seven parties participated in the election leadership debates : Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrat, UKIP, SNP, PC and Green. Northern Ireland's political parties were not included in any debates, despite the DUP , a party based in Northern Ireland, being the fourth largest party in the UK going into the election. Several parties operate in specific regions only. The main national parties, standing in most seats across all of
6440-568: The major parties had the following percentages of black and ethnic minority candidates: the Conservatives 11%, the Liberal Democrats 10%, Labour 9%, UKIP 6%, the Greens 4%. The average age of the candidates for the seven major parties was 45. The youngest candidates were all aged 18: Solomon Curtis (Labour, Wealden ); Niamh McCarthy (Independent, Liverpool Wavertree ); Michael Burrows (UKIP, Inverclyde ); Declan Lloyd (Labour, South East Cornwall ); and Laura-Jane Rossington ( Communist Party , Plymouth Sutton and Devonport ). The oldest candidate
6532-628: The opposition and Conservative leader William Hague , and former leader of the Liberal Democrats Menzies Campbell . Notable newcomers to the House of Commons included future prime minister and Labour leader Keir Starmer ; future prime minister, Conservative leader and Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak , who also succeeded Hague as MP for Richmond (Yorks) ; future deputy prime minister and deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner and future SNP Commons leader Ian Blackford . Another future prime minister and Conservative leader, Boris Johnson , who had previously left Parliament in 2008 so he could serve as
6624-496: The period between the dissolution of Parliament and the following general election polling day from 17 to 25 working days. This had the effect of moving forward the date of the dissolution of the Parliament to 30 March 2015. The key dates were: While at the previous election there had been a record 149 MPs not standing for re-election, the 2015 election saw 89 MPs standing down. Out of these MPs, 37 were Conservatives, 37 were Labour, 10 were Liberal Democrats, 3 were Independents, 1
6716-465: The position of returning officer in borough constituencies is held ex officio by the mayor or chairman of the borough or district council, and the high sheriff of the county in county constituencies. The administration of elections is carried out by the acting returning officer, who will typically be a local council's chief executive or Head of Legal Services. The role, however, is separate from these posts, and can be held by any person appointed by
6808-459: The power this would bring them in negotiations; Labour and the Conservatives both insisted that they were working towards winning overall majorities, while they were also reported to be preparing for the possibility of a second election later in the year. In practice, Labour were prepared to make a "broad" offer to the Liberal Democrats in the event of a hung parliament. Most predictions saw Labour as having more potential support in parliament than
6900-413: The previous common electoral quota for the whole United Kingdom and replaced it with four separate national minimal seat quotas for the respective Boundaries commissions to work to, as a result the separate national electoral quotas came into effect: England 69,534; Northern Ireland 67,145, Wales 58,383 and in Scotland only 54,741 electors. The Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011 gives
6992-491: The prime minister had the power, by order made by Statutory Instrument under section 1(5) of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011, to fix the polling day to be up to two months later than 7 May 2015. Such a Statutory Instrument must be approved by each House of Parliament. Under section 14 of the Electoral Registration and Administration Act 2013 , the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 was amended to extend
7084-800: The rotten boroughs. It also divided larger counties into two two-seat divisions , the boundaries of which were defined in the Parliamentary Boundaries Act 1832 , and gave seven counties a third member. Similar reforms were also made for Scotland and for Ireland . The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 ( 48 & 49 Vict. c. 23) equalised the population of constituencies; it split larger boroughs into multiple single-member constituencies, reduced smaller boroughs from two seats each to one, split each two-seat county and division into two single-member constituencies, and each three-seat county into single-member constituencies. The House of Commons (Redistribution of Seats) Act 1958 , eliminated
7176-430: The term burgh is used instead of borough . Since the advent of universal suffrage , the differences between county and borough constituencies are slight. Formerly (see below ) the franchise differed, and there were also county borough and university constituencies. Borough constituencies are predominantly urban while county constituencies are predominantly rural . There is no definitive statutory criterion for
7268-400: The vote and stood 338 candidates at the 2010 general election, stood only eight candidates this year following a collapse in their support. Seven hundred fifty-three other candidates stood at the general election, including Independents and candidates from other parties. The main parties in Northern Ireland in order of their number of seats were: Smaller parties in Northern Ireland included
7360-542: The year before. The Labour campaign was launched on 27 March at Olympic Park in London . Ed Miliband 's EdStone was a major feature of the campaign which was covered by the media. Deputy Leader of the Labour Party Harriet Harman embarked on a pink bus tour as part of her Woman to Woman campaign . The Conservative manifesto committed to "a straight in-out referendum on our membership of
7452-433: The years following the 2015 election, the tweet became infamous. Conservative campaigning sought to highlight what they described as the dangers of a minority Labour administration supported by the SNP. This proved effective at dominating the agenda of the campaign and at motivating voters to support them. The surprise Conservative victory was "widely put down to the success of the anti-Labour/SNP warnings", according to
7544-774: Was Doris Osen, 84, of the Elderly Persons' Independent Party (EPIC), who contested Ilford North . Other candidates aged over 80 included three long-serving Labour MPs standing for re-election: Sir Gerald Kaufman (aged 84; Manchester Gorton ), Dennis Skinner (aged 83; Bolsover ) and David Winnick (aged 81; Walsall North ). Following his re-election, Kaufman became Father of the House , an honorary title he held until his death in early 2017. Several candidates, including two each for Labour and UKIP, were suspended from their respective parties after nominations were closed. Independent candidate Ronnie Carroll died after nominations were closed. In late 2014, six months before
7636-557: Was Sinn Féin and 1 was Plaid Cymru. The highest-profile members of parliament leaving were: Gordon Brown , the former Prime Minister, and William Hague , the former Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition . Alongside Brown and Hague, 17 former cabinet ministers stood down at the election, including Stephen Dorrell , Jack Straw , Alistair Darling , David Blunkett , Sir Malcolm Rifkind and Dame Tessa Jowell . The highest-profile Liberal Democrat to stand down
7728-461: Was aiming to form a minority government. The Liberal Democrats said that they would talk first to whichever party won the most seats. They later campaigned on being a stabilising influence should either the Conservatives or Labour fall short of a majority, with the slogan "We will bring a heart to a Conservative Government and a brain to a Labour one". Both Labour and the Liberal Democrats ruled out coalitions with UKIP. Ruth Davidson , leader of
7820-414: Was also the first UK general election to use individual rather than household voter registration . An election is called following the dissolution of the Parliament of the United Kingdom . The 2015 general election was the first to be held under the provisions of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 . Prior to this, the power to dissolve Parliament was a royal prerogative , exercised by the sovereign on
7912-744: Was best placed to beat the SNP. The deadline for parties and individuals to file candidate nomination papers to the acting returning officer (and the deadline for candidates to withdraw) was 4 p.m. on 9 April 2015. The total number of candidates was 3,971; the second-highest number in history, slightly down from the record 4,150 candidates at the last election in 2010. There were a record number of female candidates standing in terms of both absolute numbers and percentage of candidates: 1,020 (26.1%) in 2015, up from 854 (21.1%) in 2010. The proportion of female candidates for major parties ranged from 41% of Alliance Party candidates to 12% of UKIP candidates. According to UCL's Parliamentary Candidates UK project
8004-475: Was expanded from the 2004 elections onward to include Gibraltar , the only British overseas territory that was part of the European Union , following a court case. 2015 United Kingdom general election David Cameron Conservative David Cameron Conservative The 2015 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday, 7 May 2015 to elect 650 members of Parliament (MPs) to
8096-556: Was much discussion about possible post-election coalitions or other arrangements, such as confidence and supply agreements. Some UK political parties that only stand in part of the country have reciprocal relationships with parties standing in other parts of the country. These include: On 17 March 2015 the Democratic Unionist Party and the Ulster Unionist Party agreed an election pact, whereby
8188-465: Was the constituency of a county corporate , combining the franchises of both county and borough. Until 1950 there were also university constituencies , which gave graduates an additional representation. Similar distinctions applied in the Irish House of Commons , while the non-university elected members of the Parliament of Scotland were called Shire Commissioners and Burgh Commissioners. After
8280-534: Was their former leader Sir Menzies Campbell , while the longest-serving MP, Sir Peter Tapsell , also retired, having served as an MP continuously since 1966 , or for 49 years. On 9 April 2015, the deadline for standing for the general election, there were 464 political parties registered with the Electoral Commission . Candidates who did not belong to a party were either labelled as an Independent or not labelled at all. The Conservative Party and
8372-399: Was their worst result since their formation in 1988. Cabinet ministers Vince Cable , Ed Davey , and Danny Alexander lost their seats, whilst Clegg only narrowly held his own seat. The UK Independence Party (UKIP) received 12.6 per cent of the vote, displacing the Liberal Democrats as the third-placed party in terms of popular vote, but won only one seat: Clacton , which they had gained at
8464-400: Was to reduce the number of MPs to 500, and for them to be elected using a proportional vote system . The Government increased the amount of money that parties and candidates were allowed to spend on campaigning during the election by 23%, a move decided against the advice of the Electoral Commission . The election saw the first cap on spending by parties in individual constituencies during
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