HomeWorld News2024 UK General Election: How the Labour Party fared in previous elections
The Labour Party, founded in 1900, is a centre-left UK party that has formed 11 governments since 1918, though losing the last 4 elections. Exit polls now predict a historic Labour landslide, potentially ending 14 years of Conservative rule. Labour’s electoral performance has fluctuated greatly over the decades.
By CNBCTV18July 5, 2024, 2:52:29 AM IST IST (Published)
The Labour Party is a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom, formed in 1900 as an alliance between trade unions, ethical socialists, and state socialists. Along with the Conservative Party, Labour is one of the two main political parties in the UK. The Labour Party is projected to win 410 seats in the 670-strong House of Commons.
Since 1918, Labour has either formed the government or served as the Official Opposition. They have formed 11 governments, compared to 13 for the Conservatives in the same period. However, Labour has lost the last four general elections since 2010, and is currently the second-largest party behind the Conservatives. Labour is poised to make a massive comeback, with exit polls predicting a landslide victory for the party, ending the Tories’ 14-year dominion.
Labour’s electoral performance has varied significantly over the decades. They achieved their first minority governments in 1923 and 1929, before forming their first majority government in 1945. Labour’s vote share peaked at 48.8% in 1950, but then declined to a post-war low of 27.6% in 1983. Their best result was in 1997, when they won a record 418 seats. In the most recent 2019 election, Labour won only 202 seats, their lowest total since 1935.
Labour Party results since 1900
| Year | Leader | Seats | Vote share |
| 1900 | Keir Hardie | 2/607 | 1.8% |
| 1906 | 29/670 | 5.7% | |
| 1910 | Arthur Henderson | 40/670 | 7.6% |
| 1910 | George Nicoll Barnes | 42/670 | 7.1% |
| 1918 | William Adamson | 57/707 | 20.8% |
| 1922 | JR Clynes | 142/615 | 29.7% |
| 1923 | Ramsay MacDonald | 191/615 | 30.7% |
| 1924 | 151/615 | 33.3% | |
| 1929 | 267/615 | 37.1% | |
| 1931 | Arthur Henderson | 52/615 | 30.9% |
| 1935 | Clement Attlee | 154/615 | 38% |
| 1945 | 393/640 | 48% | |
| 1950 | 315/625 | 46.1% | |
| 1951 | 295/625 | 48.8% | |
| 1955 | 277/630 | 46.4% | |
| 1959 | Hugh Gaitskell | 258/630 | 43.8% |
| 1964 | Harold Wilson | 317/630 | 44.1% |
| 1966 | 364/630 | 48% | |
| 1970 | 288/630 | 43.1% | |
| 1974 | 301/635 | 37.2% | |
| 1974 | 319/635 | 39.3% | |
| 1979 | James Callaghan | 269/635 | 36.9% |
| 1983 | Michael Foot | 209/650 | 27.6% |
| 1987 | Neil Kinnock | 229/630 | 30.8% |
| 1992 | 271/651 | 34.4% | |
| 1997 | Tony Blair | 418/659 | 43.2% |
| 2001 | 412/659 | 40.7% | |
| 2005 | 355/646 | 35.2% | |
| 2010 | Gordon Brown | 258/650 | 29% |
| 2015 | Ed Miliband | 232/650 | 30.4% |
| 2017 | Jeremy Corbyn | 262/650 | 40% |
| 2019 | 202/650 | 32.1% |
Despite these ups and downs, Labour has remained one of the two dominant parties in UK politics for over a century, providing either the government or the Official Opposition in every general election since 1918.
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