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| Held just months after ], it was the first general election to be held since ], as general elections had been suspended during ]. It resulted in the shock election defeat of the ] led by ] and the landslide victory of the ] led by ], who won a majority of 145 seats. | Held just months after ], it was the first general election to be held since ], as general elections had been suspended during ]. It resulted in the shock election defeat of the ] led by ] and the landslide victory of the ] led by ], who won a majority of 145 seats. | ||
| The result of the election was almost totally unexpected, given the hero status of Winston Churchill, but reflected the voters' belief that the Labour Party were better able to rebuild the country following the war than the Conservatives. Churchill and the Conservatives are also generally considered to have ran a poor campaign in comparison to Labour; Churchill's statement that Atlee's program would require a Getapo-esque body to implement is considered to have been particularly poorly-judged. Equally, whilst voters respected and liked Churchill's wartime record, they were more broadly distrustful of the Conservative Party's record in the late thirties. (It is worth remembering that the last election had been held in 1935, and voters had been given no |
The result of the election was almost totally unexpected, given the hero status of Winston Churchill, but reflected the voters' belief that the Labour Party were better able to rebuild the country following the war than the Conservatives. Churchill and the Conservatives are also generally considered to have ran a poor campaign in comparison to Labour; Churchill's statement that Atlee's program would require a Getapo-esque body to implement is considered to have been particularly poorly-judged. Equally, whilst voters respected and liked Churchill's wartime record, they were more broadly distrustful of the Conservative Party's record in the late thirties. (It is worth remembering that the last election had been held in 1935, and voters had been given no opportunity, due to the war, to 'let off steam' electorally between then and 1945.) | ||
| The Conservatives had become associated with the unemployment and misery of the ], during the ] and there was little appetite for a return to pre-war Conservative policies. The Labour Party, on the other hand, promised to create full employment, a tax funded universal ], and a cradle-to-grave ]. | The Conservatives had become associated with the unemployment and misery of the ], during the ] and there was little appetite for a return to pre-war Conservative policies. The Labour Party, on the other hand, promised to create full employment, a tax funded universal ], and a cradle-to-grave ]. | ||
Revision as of 19:43, 11 September 2004
| 1935 election |
| 1945 election |
| 1950 election |
The British general election of 1945 held on July 5th 1945 was one of the most significant general elections of the 20th century.
Held just months after VE Day, it was the first general election to be held since 1935, as general elections had been suspended during World War II. It resulted in the shock election defeat of the Conservatives led by Winston Churchill and the landslide victory of the Labour Party led by Clement Attlee, who won a majority of 145 seats.
The result of the election was almost totally unexpected, given the hero status of Winston Churchill, but reflected the voters' belief that the Labour Party were better able to rebuild the country following the war than the Conservatives. Churchill and the Conservatives are also generally considered to have ran a poor campaign in comparison to Labour; Churchill's statement that Atlee's program would require a Getapo-esque body to implement is considered to have been particularly poorly-judged. Equally, whilst voters respected and liked Churchill's wartime record, they were more broadly distrustful of the Conservative Party's record in the late thirties. (It is worth remembering that the last election had been held in 1935, and voters had been given no opportunity, due to the war, to 'let off steam' electorally between then and 1945.)
The Conservatives had become associated with the unemployment and misery of the 1930s, during the Great Depression and there was little appetite for a return to pre-war Conservative policies. The Labour Party, on the other hand, promised to create full employment, a tax funded universal National Health Service, and a cradle-to-grave welfare state.
| Party | Votes | Seats | Loss/Gain | Share of Vote (%) |
| Labour | 11,967,746 | 393 | + 239 | 48.0 |
| Conservative | 8,716,211 | 197 | - 190 | 36.2 |
| Liberal | 2,177,938 | 12 | - 9 | 9.0 |
| National Liberal | 686,652 | 11 | - 22 | 2.9 |
| Independent | 133,191 | 8 | + 6 | 0.6 |
| National | 130,513 | 2 | + 1 | 0.5 |
| Common Wealth | 110,634 | 1 | + 1 | 0.5 |
| Communist | 97,945 | 2 | + 1 | 0.4 |
| Irish Nationalist | 92,819 | 2 | 0.4 | |
| National Independent | 65,171 | 2 | 0.3 | |
| Independent Labour | 63,135 | 2 | 0.3 | |
| Independent Conservative | 57,823 | 2 | + 2 | 0.2 |
| Independent Labour | 46,769 | 3 | - 1 | 0.2 |
| Independent Progressive | 35,072 | 1 | + 1 | 0.1 |
| Independent Liberal | 30,450 | 2 | + 2 | 0.1 |
| SNP | 26,707 | 0 | 0.1 | |
| Plaid Cymru | 16,017 | 0 | 0.0 | |
| Common Wealth Labour | 14,096 | 0 | 0.0 | |
| Independent Nationalist | 5,430 | 0 | 0.0 | |
| Liverpool Protestant | 2,601 | 0 | 0.0 | |
| Christian Pacifist | 2,381 | 0 | 0.0 | |
| Democratic | 1,809 | 0 | 0.0 |
Total votes cast: 24,073,025. All parties with more than 1,100 votes shown. Conservative total includes Ulster Unionists.
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