1868 United Kingdom general election

The 1868 United Kingdom general election was the first after passage of the Reform Act 1867, which enfranchised many male householders, thus greatly increasing the number of men who could vote in elections in the United Kingdom. It was the first election held in the United Kingdom in which more than a million votes were cast; nearly triple the number of votes were cast compared to the previous election in 1865.[citation needed]

1868 United Kingdom general election

← 1865 17 November – 7 December 1868 (1868-11-17 – 1868-12-07) 1874 →

All 658 seats in the House of Commons
327 seats needed for a majority
  First party Second party
  William Gladstone by Mayall, 1861.jpg Benjamin Disraeli by Cornelius Jabez Hughes, 1878.jpg
Leader William Gladstone Benjamin Disraeli
Party Liberal Conservative
Leader since 3 December 1868 27 February 1868
Leader's seat Greenwich
(Defeated at South West Lancashire)
Buckinghamshire
Last election 369 seats, 59.5% 289 seats, 40.5%
Seats won 387 271
Seat change Increase18 Decrease18
Popular vote 1,428,776 903,318
Percentage 61.2% 38.7%
Swing Increase1.7% Decrease1.8%

United Kingdom general election 1868.svg
Colours denote the winning party

Prime Minister before election

Benjamin Disraeli
Conservative

Prime Minister after
election

William Gladstone
Liberal

The Liberals, led by William Gladstone, increased their majority over Benjamin Disraeli's Conservatives again to more than 100 seats.

This was the last general election at which all seats were taken by only the two leading parties, although the parties at the time were loose coalitions and party affiliation was not listed on registration papers.[citation needed]

ResultsEdit

 
Largest party in each constituent country
387 271
Liberal Conservative
UK General Election 1868
Party Candidates Votes
Stood Elected Gained Unseated Net % of total % No. Net %
  Liberal 600 387 +18 58.81 61.24 1,428,776 +2.0
  Conservative 436 271 −18 41.19 38.71 903,318 −2.1
  Others 3 0 0 0 0 0 0.05 1,157 N/A

Voting summaryEdit

Popular vote
Liberal
61.24%
Conservative
38.71%
Others
0.05%

Seats summaryEdit

Parliamentary seats
Liberal
58.81%
Conservative
41.19%
Others
0.0%

Regional resultsEdit

Great BritainEdit

Party Candidates Unopposed Seats Seats change Votes % % change
Liberal 515 80 321  7 1,374,315 61.4
Conservative 383 65 234  10 864,551 38.6
Other 1 0 0 969 0.0
Total 899 145 555  3 2,239,835 100
EnglandEdit
Party Candidates Unopposed Seats Seats change Votes % % change
Liberal 412 46 244  7 1,192,098 59.7
Conservative 334 54 211  2 803,637 40.2
Other 1 0 0 969 0.1
Total 747 100 455  9 1,996,704 100
ScotlandEdit
Party Candidates Unopposed Seats Seats change Votes % % change
Liberal 70 23 51  9 125,356 82.5
Conservative 20 3 7  4 23,985 17.5
Total 90 26 58  5 149,341 100
WalesEdit
Party Candidates Unopposed Seats Seats change Votes % % change
Liberal 29 10 23  5 52,256 62.1
Conservative 20 4 10  4 29,866 37.9
Total 49 14 33  1 82,122 100

IrelandEdit

Party Candidates Unopposed Seats Seats change Votes % % change
Liberal 85 41 66  8 54,461 57.9 +2.3
Conservative 53 26 37  8 38,765 41.9  2.5
Other 2 0 0   188 0.2 +0.2
Total 140 67 103   149,341 100

UniversitiesEdit

Party Candidates Unopposed Seats Seats change Votes % % change
Conservative 9 4 6   7,063 55.4
Liberal 4 1 3  3 4,605 44.6
Total 13 5 9 11,668 100

See alsoEdit

References and further readingEdit

  • Craig, F. W. S. (1989), British Electoral Facts: 1832–1987, Dartmouth: Gower, ISBN 0900178302
  • Rallings, Colin; Thrasher, Michael, eds. (2000), British Electoral Facts 1832–1999, Ashgate Publishing Ltd
  • Roberts, Matthew (2013). "Election Cartoons and Political Communication In Victorian England". Cultural & Social History. 10 (3): 369–395. doi:10.2752/147800413X13661166397229. S2CID 143879878. (covers 1860 to 1890).

External linksEdit