British Elections History

United Kingdom General Elections

Overview

General elections in the United Kingdom are held to elect members of the House of Commons, the lower house of Parliament. The first general election was held in 1802, and since then, there have been 58 general elections.

The most recent general election was held on December 12, 2019. The Conservative Party won the most seats in the election, and Boris Johnson became Prime Minister.

Electoral System

The United Kingdom uses a first-past-the-post electoral system. This means that the candidate with the most votes in each constituency wins the seat.

The first-past-the-post system has been criticized for being unfair to smaller parties. However, it is also credited with producing stable governments.

Major Parties

The two main political parties in the United Kingdom are the Conservative Party and the Labour Party. Both parties have a long history and have held power many times.

Other major parties include the Liberal Democrats, the Scottish National Party, and the Plaid Cymru.

By-Elections

By-elections are held when a seat in the House of Commons becomes vacant. By-elections can be caused by the death, resignation, or disqualification of a sitting MP.

There have been 16 by-elections since the new Parliament was elected in December 2019.