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| next_year = 1955 | next_year = 1955
| elected_members = List of MPs elected in the 1951 United Kingdom general election | elected_members = List of MPs elected in the 1951 United Kingdom general election
| seats_for_election = All ] in the ] | majority_seats = 313 | seats_for_election = All ] in the ]
| majority_seats = 313
| election_date = 25 October 1951 | election_date = 25 October 1951
| turnout = 82.6%, {{decrease}}1.3% | turnout = 82.6% ({{decrease}}1.3 ])


<!-- Conservative --> <!-- Conservative -->| image1 = ]
| image1 = ]
| leader1 = ] | leader1 = ]
| leader_since1 = 9 October 1940 | leader_since1 = 9 October 1940
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| leaders_seat1 = ] | leaders_seat1 = ]
| last_election1 = 298 seats, 43.4% | last_election1 = 298 seats, 43.4%
| seats1 = '''321'''{{efn|name=speaker|The seat and vote count figures for the Conservatives given here include the Speaker of the House of Commons.}}
| seats1 = '''321'''
| seat_change1 = {{increase}}23 | seat_change1 = {{increase}}23
| popular_vote1 = 13,717,851 | popular_vote1 = 13,717,851
| percentage1 = 48.0% | percentage1 = 48.0%
| swing1 = {{increase}}4.6% | swing1 = {{increase}}4.6 ]


<!-- Labour --> <!-- Labour -->| image2 = ]
| image2 = ]
| leader2 = ] | leader2 = ]
| leader_since2 = ] | leader_since2 = ]
| party2 = Labour Party (UK) | party2 = Labour Party (UK)
| leaders_seat2 = ] | leaders_seat2 = ]
| last_election2 = 315 seats, 46.1% | last_election2 = 315 seats, 46.1%
| seats2 = 295 | seats2 = 295
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| popular_vote2 = '''13,948,385''' | popular_vote2 = '''13,948,385'''
| percentage2 = '''48.8%''' | percentage2 = '''48.8%'''
| swing2 = {{increase}}2.7% | swing2 = {{increase}}2.7 ]


<!-- Liberal --> <!-- Liberal -->| image3 = ]
| image3 = ]
| leader3 = ] | leader3 = ]
| leader_since3 = 2 August 1945 | leader_since3 = 2 August 1945
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| popular_vote3 = 730,546 | popular_vote3 = 730,546
| percentage3 = 2.5% | percentage3 = 2.5%
| swing3 = {{decrease}}6.6% | swing3 = {{decrease}}6.6 ]

| map_image = UK General Election, 1951.svg | map_image = UK General Election, 1951.svg
| map_size = 200px | map_size = 200px
| map_caption = Colours denote the winning party—as shown in {{slink||Results}} | map_caption = Colours denote the winning party—as shown in {{slink||Results}}
| map2_image = ]

| map2_image = ]
| map2_caption = Composition of the ] after the election | map2_caption = Composition of the ] after the election
| title = ] | title = ]
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| after_election = ] | after_election = ]
| after_party = Conservative Party (UK) | after_party = Conservative Party (UK)
|opinion_polls=Opinion polling for the 1951 United Kingdom general election | opinion_polls = Opinion polling for the 1951 United Kingdom general election
}} }}


The '''1951 United Kingdom general election''' was held twenty months after the ], which the ] had won with a slim majority of just five seats. The Labour government called a ] for Thursday 25 October 1951 in the hope of increasing its parliamentary majority. However, despite winning the popular vote and achieving both the highest-ever total vote (until it was surpassed by the ] in ] and again in ]) and highest percentage vote share, Labour won fewer seats than the Conservative Party. This was mainly due to the collapse of the Liberal vote, which enabled the Conservatives to win seats by default. The election marked the return of ] as ], and the beginning of Labour's thirteen-year spell in opposition. This was the third and final general election to be held during the reign of King ], as he died the following year on 6 February and was succeeded by his daughter, ]. It was the last election in which the Conservatives did ] than in England. The '''1951 United Kingdom general election''' was held twenty months after the ], which the ] had won with a slim majority of just five seats. The Labour government called a ] for Thursday 25 October 1951 in the hope of increasing its parliamentary majority.


The 1951 election was the second one to be covered on ]. On election night, the results were televised from the BBC ] in London. ], ] and H. G. Nicholas headed the election night coverage from 10.15pm until 4.00am on the television service. On the following day, television coverage started at 10.00am and continued throughout the day until 5.00pm.<ref>{{cite journal |title=The General Election |url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/5fa68f09ad374bc0b7c450267879de7b |journal=] |issue=1458 |pages=50 |date=19 October 1951}}</ref> This election is remarkable for the fact that despite the Labour Party winning the popular vote (48.8%) and achieving the highest-ever total vote (13,948,385) at the time, the ] won a majority of 17 seats. This unusual phenomenon can be attributed to the collapse of the Liberal vote, which enabled the Conservatives to win seats by default.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Jenkin |first=Thomas P. |date=1952 |title=The British General Election of 1951 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/442551 |journal=The Western Political Quarterly |volume=5 |issue=1 |pages=51–65 |doi=10.2307/442551 |jstor=442551 |issn=0043-4078}}</ref>

The Labour Party has never gone on to equal or surpass the voteshare or the total vote that it acquired in this election.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Linton |first=Martin. |title=Labour can still win |url=https://jstor.org/stable/community.29887061 |journal=Fabian Tract |language=English |issue=532}}</ref> The Conservatives, however, would break the record of the highest votes in ] and again in ]. It would also exceed the 48.8% voteshare won by the Labour Party, in the 1955 and 1959 elections winning over 49% in each case.

The election marked the return of ] as ] and the beginning of Labour's 13-year spell in opposition. It was the third and final general election to be held during the reign of King ], as he died the following year on 6 February and was succeeded by his daughter, ]. It was the last election in which the Conservatives did ] than in England.

The 1951 election was the second one to be covered on ]. On election night, the results were televised from the BBC ] studio in London. ], ] and H. G. Nicholas headed the election night coverage from 10.15pm to 4.00am on the television service. On the following day, television coverage started at 10.00am and continued throughout the day until 5.00pm.<ref>{{cite journal |title=The General Election |url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/5fa68f09ad374bc0b7c450267879de7b |journal=] |issue=1458 |pages=50 |date=19 October 1951}}</ref>
{{UK general election navigation|clear=none|1945|1950|1951|1955|1959}} {{UK general election navigation|clear=none|1945|1950|1951|1955|1959}}


==Background== ==Background==
King ] was apprehensive that, given that the government had such a slim majority and that he was to leave the country to go on his planned ] tour in early 1952, there was a possibility of a change of government in his absence; ] decided to call the election to assuage this concern.{{sfn|Judd|2012|page=238|ps=: Judd writes that Attlee confirmed the king's anxiety in his own autobiography.}} (In the event, the King became too ill to travel, and delegated the tour to his daughter ] shortly before his death in February 1952). Parliament was dissolved on 5 October 1951.<ref>{{cite web |title=Parliamentary Election Timetables |url=https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/RP97-40/RP97-40.pdf |edition=3rd |publisher=] |date=25 March 1997 |access-date=3 July 2022}}</ref> King ] feared since that the government had such a slim majority, and he was to leave the country to go on his planned ] tour in early 1952, there was a possibility of a change of government in his absence. ] decided to call the election to assuage that concern.{{sfn|Judd|2012|page=238|ps=: Judd writes that Attlee confirmed in his own autobiography the King's anxiety.}} (In the event, the King became too ill to travel and delegated the tour to his daughter ] shortly before his death in February 1952.) Parliament was dissolved on 5 October 1951.<ref>{{cite web |title=Parliamentary Election Timetables |url=https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/RP97-40/RP97-40.pdf |edition=3rd |publisher=] |date=25 March 1997 |access-date=3 July 2022}}</ref>


The ] government, which by now had implemented most of its manifesto from the ], was beginning to lose cabinet ministers, such as ] (death) and ] (health issues). The ], however, after ], had more new MPs. The ] government, which had implemented most of its manifesto from the ], was beginning to lose cabinet ministers, such as ] (death) and ] (health issues). The ], however, had more MPs since the ].


==Campaign== ==Campaign==
The Labour Party entered the election weakened by the emerging schism between ], on the right of the party, and left-wing ].<ref name=":0">{{cite book |last=Thorpe |first=Andrew |url=http://link.springer.com/10.1007/978-1-349-25305-0 |title=A History of the British Labour Party |publisher=Macmillan Education UK |location=London |date=1997 |pages=133 |isbn=978-0-333-56081-5 |doi=10.1007/978-1-349-25305-0 |ref=none}}</ref> Its manifesto stated that the party "proud of its record, sure in its policies—confidently asks the electors to renew its mandate". It identified four key tasks facing the United Kingdom which it would tackle: the need to work for peace, the need to work to "maintain full employment and to increase production", the need to reduce cost of living, and the need to "build a just society". The manifesto argued that only a Labour government could achieve these tasks.<ref name="TimesHoC51A">{{citation |title=The Times House of Commons 1951 |date=1951 |publisher=The Times Office |location=London |page=228}}</ref> It also contrasted the Britain of 1951 with that of the ] (when there had largely been Conservative-led governments), saying this period saw "]; mass fear; mass misery".<ref name="TimesHoC51B">{{citation |title=The Times House of Commons 1951 |date=1951 |publisher=The Times Office |location=London |page=229}}</ref> It did not promise more ]s as it did in the previous year's election, and instead focused on offering more ] and a pledge to "associate the workers more closely with the administration of public industries and services", although it remained opposed to full ] of industries.<ref name=":0" /> The Labour Party entered the election by being weakened by the emerging schism between ], on the right of the party, and the ], on its left.<ref name=":0">{{cite book |last=Thorpe |first=Andrew |url=http://link.springer.com/10.1007/978-1-349-25305-0 |title=A History of the British Labour Party |publisher=Macmillan Education UK |location=London |date=1997 |pages=133 |isbn=978-0-333-56081-5 |doi=10.1007/978-1-349-25305-0 |ref=none}}</ref> The party's manifesto stated that the party "proud of its record, sure in its policies—confidently asks the electors to renew its mandate". It identified four key tasks facing the United Kingdom that it would tackle: the need to work for peace, the need to work to "maintain full employment and to increase production", the need to reduce cost of living and the need to "build a just society". The manifesto argued that only a Labour government could achieve those tasks.<ref name="TimesHoC51A">{{citation |title=The Times House of Commons 1951 |date=1951 |publisher=The Times Office |location=London |page=228}}</ref> It also contrasted the Britain of 1951 with that of the ] in which there had been largely Conservative-led governments by noting that the interwar period had seen "]; mass fear; mass misery".<ref name="TimesHoC51B">{{citation |title=The Times House of Commons 1951 |date=1951 |publisher=The Times Office |location=London |page=229}}</ref> It did not promise more ], unlike in the previous year's election, and instead focused on offering more ] and a pledge to "associate the workers more closely with the administration of public industries and services". However, it remained opposed to full ] of industries.<ref name=":0" />


While Labour began to have some policy divisions during the election campaign, the Conservatives ran an efficient campaign that was well-funded and orchestrated. Their manifesto ''Britain Strong and Free'' stressed that safeguarding "our traditional way of life" was integral to the Conservative purpose. Significantly, they did not propose to dismantle the ] or the ] which the Labour government had established.{{sfn|Kynaston|2009|page=32}} The manifesto did, however, promise to "stop all further nationalisation" and to repeal the ] introduced by the Labour government, which was being implemented during the election season. It also attacked Labour for ending ] and ] too slowly, and for the rise of industrial conflicts after the end of the wartime ] and ] bans on ]s.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="TimesHoC51C">{{citation |title=The Times House of Commons 1951 |date=1951 |publisher=The Times Office |location=London |page=234}}</ref> While Labour began to have some policy divisions during the election campaign, the Conservatives ran an efficient campaign, which was well-funded and orchestrated. Their manifesto, ''Britain Strong and Free'', stressed that safeguarding "our traditional way of life" was integral to the Conservative purpose. Significantly, they did not propose to dismantle the ] or the ] which the Labour government had established.{{sfn|Kynaston|2009|page=32}} The manifesto, however, promised to "stop all further nationalisation" and to repeal the ], which had been introduced by the Labour government and was being implemented during the election season. The Conservatives also attacked Labour for ending ] and ] too slowly and for the rise of industrial conflicts after the end of the wartime ] and the ] bans on ]s.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="TimesHoC51C">{{citation |title=The Times House of Commons 1951 |date=1951 |publisher=The Times Office |location=London |page=234}}</ref>


As for the ], its poor election result in ] only worsened this time; unable to get the same insurance against losses of ] that it did in the previous year, it was able to field only 109 candidates as opposed to 478 in 1950, and thus posted the worst general election result in the party's history, getting just 2.5% of the vote and winning only six seats. The Liberals' (and later the ]) popular vote total has not fallen so low since, though their lowest total of six seats would be matched in several future elections.<ref>{{citation |title=1951: Churchill back in power at last |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/vote_2005/basics/4393277.stm |publisher=] |date=5 April 2005 |access-date=5 October 2013}}</ref> The Liberal Party's growing irrelevance weakened the Labour Party, for two-thirds of potential Liberal voters supported the Conservatives.<ref name=":0" /> As for the ], its poor election result in ] only worsened this time. Unable to get the same insurance against losses of ] of the previous year, it fielded only 109 candidates, as opposed to 478 in 1950, and thus posted the worst general election result in the party's history by getting just 2.5% of the vote and winning only six seats. The popular vote of the Liberals and later the ] has not fallen so low since, but their lowest number of six seats would be matched in several future elections.<ref>{{citation |title=1951: Churchill back in power at last |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/vote_2005/basics/4393277.stm |publisher=] |date=5 April 2005 |access-date=5 October 2013}}</ref> The Liberal Party's growing irrelevance weakened the Labour Party since two thirds of potential Liberal voters supported the Conservatives.<ref name=":0" />


Four candidates were returned unopposed, all of them ]s in Northern Ireland. This is the most recent general election in which any candidates have been returned unopposed, although there have since been unopposed ]s.<ref>{{cite web |title=General Election Results 1885–1979 |url=http://www.election.demon.co.uk/geresults.html |url-status=dead |website=election.demon.co.uk |access-date=26 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080223222448/http://www.election.demon.co.uk/geresults.html |archive-date=8 October 2020 |via=Wayback Machine}}</ref> Four candidates were returned unopposed, all of them ] in Northern Ireland. It is the most recent general election in which any candidates have been returned unopposed although there have been later unopposed ]s.<ref>{{cite web |title=General Election Results 1885–1979 |url=http://www.election.demon.co.uk/geresults.html |url-status=dead |website=election.demon.co.uk |access-date=26 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080223222448/http://www.election.demon.co.uk/geresults.html |archive-date=23 February 2008 |via=Wayback Machine}}</ref>


The subsequent Labour defeat was significant for several reasons: the party polled almost a quarter of a million votes more than the Conservative Party and its ] ally combined; won the most votes that Labour has ever won (as of 2019); and won the most votes of any political party in any election in British political history, a number not surpassed until the Conservative Party's victory in ]. The subsequent Labour defeat was significant for several reasons. The party polled almost a quarter-million votes more than the Conservative Party and its ] ally combined; won the most votes that Labour has ever won (as of 2019); and won the most votes of any political party in any election in British political history, a number that would not be surpassed until the Conservative Party's ].


Despite this, the Conservative Party formed the next government with a majority of 17 seats. It performed much better with male working-class voters than in the elections of 1945 or 1950, and was able to tip the vote away from Labour in ], the ], and ].<ref name=":0" /> Under the ] electoral system, many Labour votes were 'wasted' as part of large majorities for MPs in ]s. However, the Conservative Party formed the next government with a majority of 17 seats. It performed much better with male working-class voters than in the elections of 1945 or 1950 and tipped the vote away from Labour in ], the ] and ].<ref name=":0" /> Under the ] electoral system, many Labour votes were "wasted" because they were included in large majorities for MPs in ]s.

This was the fourth of five elections in the twentieth century where a party lost the popular vote, but won the most seats. The others were ], ], ] and ]; it also happened in the ]. The 1951 and 1874 elections are the only two examples of a political force winning an overall majority while losing the popular vote.


==Results== ==Results==

{| style="width:70%; text-align:center;"
|+ style="width:50.0%; text-align:right" | ↓{{fsp}}
|- style="color:white;"
| style="background:{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}; width:52.4%;" | '''321'''
| style="background:{{party color|Labour Party (UK)}}; width:46.2%;" | '''295'''
| style="color:black; background:{{party color|Liberal Party (UK)}}; width:1.0%;" | '''6'''
| style="background:gray; width:0.5%;" | '''3'''
|-
| <span style="color:{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}};">'''Conservative'''</span>
| <span style="color:{{party color|Labour Party (UK)}};">'''Labour'''</span>
| <span style="color:black;">'''Lib'''</span>
| <span style="color:black;">'''O'''</span>
|}
] ]
<section begin="UK General Election 1951"/> <section begin="UK General Election 1951"/>
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|} |}


Total votes cast: 28,596,594.{{efn|All parties shown. Conservative result includes the ]s.}} Total votes cast: 28,596,594.{{efn|All parties shown. Conservative result includes the ]s.}}


{| class="wikitable" style="width:70%" {| class="wikitable" style="width:70%"
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|barwidth=350px |barwidth=350px
|bars= |bars=
{{bar percent|Conservative|{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}|51.36}} {{bar percent|'''Conservative'''|{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}|51.36}}
{{bar percent|Labour|{{party color|Labour Party (UK)}}|47.20}} {{bar percent|Labour|{{party color|Labour Party (UK)}}|47.20}}
{{bar percent|Liberal|{{party color|Liberal Party (UK)}}|0.96}} {{bar percent|Liberal|{{party color|Liberal Party (UK)}}|0.96}}
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!class=unsortable|Seats !class=unsortable|Seats
|- |-
| rowspan=3 bgcolor="{{party color|Labour Party (UK)}}" | | rowspan=3 style="color:inherit;background:{{party color|Labour Party (UK)}}" |
| rowspan=3|{{party shortname linked|Labour Party (UK)}} | rowspan=3|{{party shortname linked|Labour Party (UK)}}
| {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} ('''HOLD''') | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} ('''HOLD''')
| colspan=2|273 | 273
|- |-
| {{Party name with colour|Liberal Party (UK)}} | {{Party name with colour|Liberal Party (UK)}}
|1 |1
|] |]
|- |-
| {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}}
|21 |21
|], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ] |], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ]
|- |-
| rowspan=2 bgcolor="{{party color|Nationalist Party (Northern Ireland)}}" | | rowspan=2 style="color:inherit;background:{{party color|Nationalist Party (Northern Ireland)}}" |
| rowspan=2 | {{party shortname linked|Nationalist Party (Northern Ireland)}} | rowspan=2 | {{party shortname linked|Nationalist Party (Northern Ireland)}}
| {{Party name with colour|Nationalist Party (Northern Ireland)}} ('''HOLD''') | {{Party name with colour|Nationalist Party (Northern Ireland)}} ('''HOLD''')
Line 371: Line 357:
|] |]
|- |-
| rowspan=3 bgcolor="{{party color|Liberal Party (UK)}}" | | rowspan=3 style="color:inherit;background:{{party color|Liberal Party (UK)}}" |
| rowspan=3 | {{party shortname linked|Liberal Party (UK)}} | rowspan=3 | {{party shortname linked|Liberal Party (UK)}}
| {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}}
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| {{Party name with colour|Liberal Party (UK)}} ('''HOLD''') | {{Party name with colour|Liberal Party (UK)}} ('''HOLD''')
|5 |5
|], ], ], ], ] |], ], ], ], ]
|- |-
| {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}}
|2 |2
|], ] |], ]
|- |-
| {{Party name with colour|National Liberal Party (UK, 1931)}} | {{Party name with colour|National Liberal Party (UK, 1931)}}
| {{Party name with colour|National Liberal Party (UK, 1931)}} ('''HOLD''') | {{Party name with colour|National Liberal Party (UK, 1931)}} ('''HOLD''')
|16 |16
|], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ] |], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ]
|- |-
| rowspan=2 bgcolor="{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}" | | rowspan=2 style="color:inherit;background:{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}" |
| rowspan=2 | {{party shortname linked|Conservative Party (UK)}} | rowspan=2 | {{party shortname linked|Conservative Party (UK)}}
| {{Party name with colour|National Liberal Party (UK, 1931)}} | {{Party name with colour|National Liberal Party (UK, 1931)}}
|1 |1
|] |]
|- |-
| rowspan=2 bgcolor="{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}" | | rowspan=2 style="color:inherit;background:{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}" |
| rowspan=2 | {{party shortname linked|Conservative Party (UK)}} ('''HOLD''') | rowspan=2 | {{party shortname linked|Conservative Party (UK)}} ('''HOLD''')
| colspan=2|''many'' | colspan=2|''many''
Line 404: Line 390:
|] |]
|- |-
| rowspan=2 bgcolor="{{party color|Ulster Unionist Party}}" | | rowspan=2 style="color:inherit;background:{{party color|Ulster Unionist Party}}" |
| rowspan=2 | {{party shortname linked|Ulster Unionist Party}} | rowspan=2 | {{party shortname linked|Ulster Unionist Party}}
| {{Party name with colour|Irish Labour Party}} | {{Party name with colour|Irish Labour Party}}
Line 418: Line 404:
*] *]
*] *]
*]
*] *]


Latest revision as of 19:56, 18 December 2024

October 1951 general election

1951 United Kingdom general election
← 1950 25 October 1951 1955 →
← outgoing memberselected members →
All 625 seats in the House of Commons
313 seats needed for a majority
Opinion polls
Turnout82.6% (Decrease1.3 pp)
  First party Second party Third party
 
Leader Winston Churchill Clement Attlee Clement Davies
Party Conservative Labour Liberal
Leader since 9 October 1940 25 October 1935 2 August 1945
Leader's seat Woodford Walthamstow West Montgomeryshire
Last election 298 seats, 43.4% 315 seats, 46.1% 9 seats, 9.1%
Seats won 321 295 6
Seat change Increase23 Decrease20 Decrease3
Popular vote 13,717,851 13,948,385 730,546
Percentage 48.0% 48.8% 2.5%
Swing Increase4.6 pp Increase2.7 pp Decrease6.6 pp
Colours denote the winning party—as shown in § Results
Composition of the House of Commons after the election
Prime Minister before election

Clement Attlee
Labour

Prime Minister after election

Winston Churchill
Conservative

The 1951 United Kingdom general election was held twenty months after the 1950 general election, which the Labour Party had won with a slim majority of just five seats. The Labour government called a snap election for Thursday 25 October 1951 in the hope of increasing its parliamentary majority.

This election is remarkable for the fact that despite the Labour Party winning the popular vote (48.8%) and achieving the highest-ever total vote (13,948,385) at the time, the Conservative Party won a majority of 17 seats. This unusual phenomenon can be attributed to the collapse of the Liberal vote, which enabled the Conservatives to win seats by default.

The Labour Party has never gone on to equal or surpass the voteshare or the total vote that it acquired in this election. The Conservatives, however, would break the record of the highest votes in 1992 and again in 2019. It would also exceed the 48.8% voteshare won by the Labour Party, in the 1955 and 1959 elections winning over 49% in each case.

The election marked the return of Winston Churchill as Prime Minister and the beginning of Labour's 13-year spell in opposition. It was the third and final general election to be held during the reign of King George VI, as he died the following year on 6 February and was succeeded by his daughter, Elizabeth II. It was the last election in which the Conservatives did better in Scotland than in England.

The 1951 election was the second one to be covered on BBC Television. On election night, the results were televised from the BBC Alexandra Palace studio in London. Graham Hutton, David Butler and H. G. Nicholas headed the election night coverage from 10.15pm to 4.00am on the television service. On the following day, television coverage started at 10.00am and continued throughout the day until 5.00pm.

Background

King George VI feared since that the government had such a slim majority, and he was to leave the country to go on his planned Commonwealth tour in early 1952, there was a possibility of a change of government in his absence. Clement Attlee decided to call the election to assuage that concern. (In the event, the King became too ill to travel and delegated the tour to his daughter Princess Elizabeth shortly before his death in February 1952.) Parliament was dissolved on 5 October 1951.

The Labour government, which had implemented most of its manifesto from the 1945 election, was beginning to lose cabinet ministers, such as Ernest Bevin (death) and Stafford Cripps (health issues). The Conservative Party, however, had more MPs since the 1950 general election.

Campaign

The Labour Party entered the election by being weakened by the emerging schism between Gaitskellites, on the right of the party, and the Bevanites, on its left. The party's manifesto stated that the party "proud of its record, sure in its policies—confidently asks the electors to renew its mandate". It identified four key tasks facing the United Kingdom that it would tackle: the need to work for peace, the need to work to "maintain full employment and to increase production", the need to reduce cost of living and the need to "build a just society". The manifesto argued that only a Labour government could achieve those tasks. It also contrasted the Britain of 1951 with that of the interwar years in which there had been largely Conservative-led governments by noting that the interwar period had seen "mass-unemployment; mass fear; mass misery". It did not promise more nationalisations, unlike in the previous year's election, and instead focused on offering more council housing and a pledge to "associate the workers more closely with the administration of public industries and services". However, it remained opposed to full workers' control of industries.

While Labour began to have some policy divisions during the election campaign, the Conservatives ran an efficient campaign, which was well-funded and orchestrated. Their manifesto, Britain Strong and Free, stressed that safeguarding "our traditional way of life" was integral to the Conservative purpose. Significantly, they did not propose to dismantle the British welfare state or the National Health Service which the Labour government had established. The manifesto, however, promised to "stop all further nationalisation" and to repeal the Steel Act, which had been introduced by the Labour government and was being implemented during the election season. The Conservatives also attacked Labour for ending wartime rationing and price controls too slowly and for the rise of industrial conflicts after the end of the wartime wage freeze and the Defence Regulations bans on strike actions.

As for the Liberal Party, its poor election result in 1950 only worsened this time. Unable to get the same insurance against losses of deposits of the previous year, it fielded only 109 candidates, as opposed to 478 in 1950, and thus posted the worst general election result in the party's history by getting just 2.5% of the vote and winning only six seats. The popular vote of the Liberals and later the Liberal Democrats has not fallen so low since, but their lowest number of six seats would be matched in several future elections. The Liberal Party's growing irrelevance weakened the Labour Party since two thirds of potential Liberal voters supported the Conservatives.

Four candidates were returned unopposed, all of them Ulster Unionists in Northern Ireland. It is the most recent general election in which any candidates have been returned unopposed although there have been later unopposed by-elections.

The subsequent Labour defeat was significant for several reasons. The party polled almost a quarter-million votes more than the Conservative Party and its National Liberal Party ally combined; won the most votes that Labour has ever won (as of 2019); and won the most votes of any political party in any election in British political history, a number that would not be surpassed until the Conservative Party's victory in 1992.

However, the Conservative Party formed the next government with a majority of 17 seats. It performed much better with male working-class voters than in the elections of 1945 or 1950 and tipped the vote away from Labour in Lancashire, the Home Counties and East Anglia. Under the first-past-the-post electoral system, many Labour votes were "wasted" because they were included in large majorities for MPs in safe seats.

Results

1951 United Kingdom general election
Candidates Votes
Party Leader Stood Elected Gained Unseated Net % of total % No. Net %
  Labour Clement Attlee 617 295 2 22 −20 47.2 48.8 13,948,883 +2.7
  Conservative Winston Churchill 617 321 23 1 +22 51.4 48.0 13,717,850 +4.6
  Liberal Clement Davies 109 6 1 4 −3 1.0 2.6 730,546 −6.5
  Ind. Nationalist N/A 3 2 0 0 0 0.3 0.3 92,787 N/A
  Irish Labour William Norton 1 1 1 0 +1 0.2 0.1 33,174 −0.1
  Communist Harry Pollitt 10 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.1 21,640 −0.2
  Independent N/A 6 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.1 19,791 N/A
  Plaid Cymru Gwynfor Evans 4 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 10,920 −0.1
  SNP Robert McIntyre 2 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 7,299 0.0
  Ind. Conservative N/A 1 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 5,904 N/A
  Ind. Labour Party Fred Barton 3 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 4,057 0.0
  British Empire P. J. Ridout 1 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 1,643 N/A
  Anti-Partition James McSparran 1 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 1,340 0.0
  United Socialist Guy Aldred 1 0 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 411 0.0

Total votes cast: 28,596,594.

Government's new majority 17
Total votes cast 28,596,594
Turnout 82.6%

Votes summary

Popular vote
Labour   48.78%
Conservative   47.97%
Liberal   2.55%
Others   0.70%

Headline swing: 1.13% to Conservative.

Seats summary

Parliamentary seats
Conservative   51.36%
Labour   47.20%
Liberal   0.96%
Others   0.48%

Transfers of seats

All comparisons are with the 1950 election.

From To No. Seats
Labour Labour (HOLD) 273
Liberal 1 Bolton West
Conservative 21 Barry, Battersea South, Bedfordshire South, Berwick and East Lothian, Bolton East, Buckingham, Conway, Darlington, Doncaster, Dulwich, King's Lynn, Manchester Blackley, Middlesbrough West, Norfolk South West, Oldham East, Plymouth Sutton, Reading North, Rochdale, Rutherglen, Wycombe, Yarmouth
Nationalist Nationalist (HOLD) 1 Fermanagh and South Tyrone
Ind. Nationalist 1 Mid Ulster
Liberal Labour 2 Anglesey, Meirioneth
Liberal (HOLD) 5 Cardiganshire, Carmarthen, Huddersfield West, Montgomery, Orkney and Shetland
Conservative 2 Eye, Roxburgh and Selkirk
National Liberal National Liberal (HOLD) 16 Angus North and Mearns, Angus South, Bedfordshire South, Bradford North, Denbigh, Dumfriesshire, Fife East, Harwich, Holland with Boston, Huntingdonshire, Luton, Norfolk Central, Renfrewshire West, Ross and Cromarty, St Ives, Torrington
Conservative National Liberal 1 Newcastle upon Tyne North
Conservative (HOLD) many
Speaker 1 Hexham
UUP Irish Labour 1 Belfast West
UUP 9 North Antrim, South Antrim, Armagh, Belfast East, Belfast North, Belfast South, Down North, Down South, Londonderry

See also

Notes

  1. The seat and vote count figures for the Conservatives given here include the Speaker of the House of Commons.
  2. All parties shown. Conservative result includes the Ulster Unionists.
  3. No seats changed hands during the 1950–51 Parliament.

References

  1. Jenkin, Thomas P. (1952). "The British General Election of 1951". The Western Political Quarterly. 5 (1): 51–65. doi:10.2307/442551. ISSN 0043-4078. JSTOR 442551.
  2. Linton, Martin. "Labour can still win". Fabian Tract (532).
  3. "The General Election". Radio Times (1458): 50. 19 October 1951.
  4. Judd 2012, p. 238: Judd writes that Attlee confirmed in his own autobiography the King's anxiety.
  5. "Parliamentary Election Timetables" (PDF) (3rd ed.). House of Commons Library. 25 March 1997. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  6. ^ Thorpe, Andrew (1997). A History of the British Labour Party. London: Macmillan Education UK. p. 133. doi:10.1007/978-1-349-25305-0. ISBN 978-0-333-56081-5.
  7. The Times House of Commons 1951, London: The Times Office, 1951, p. 228
  8. The Times House of Commons 1951, London: The Times Office, 1951, p. 229
  9. Kynaston 2009, p. 32.
  10. The Times House of Commons 1951, London: The Times Office, 1951, p. 234
  11. 1951: Churchill back in power at last, BBC News, 5 April 2005, retrieved 5 October 2013
  12. "General Election Results 1885–1979". election.demon.co.uk. Archived from the original on 23 February 2008. Retrieved 26 November 2020 – via Wayback Machine.

Sources

External links

Manifestos

United Kingdom Elections and referendums in the United Kingdom
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See also
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