| Parliament name |
Parliament |
| Structure of parliament |
Bicameral |
| Chamber name |
House of Commons |
| Related chamber (for bicameral parliaments) |
House of Lords
|
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
7 May 2015 |
| Purpose of elections |
Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative Party won an outright majority in the 650-member House of Commons, despite pre-election polls predicting another hung parliament. Its advantage over the Labour Party more than doubled from 48 seats in 2010 to 98 in 2015. The Conservatives' coalition partner in the outgoing government, the Liberal Democrats, saw its number of seats fall dramatically from 57 to eight. Meanwhile, the Scottish National Party sharply increased its share from six to 56, winning all but three seats in Scotland.
The 2015 elections were the first to be held after the referendum on Scottish independence in September 2014, where 55% of voters voted to remain part of the United Kingdom. During the election campaign, major electoral issues included the minimum wage, healthcare, education and immigration, as well as the status of Scotland in the United Kingdom and British membership of the European Union. |
Date of previous elections: 6 May 2010
Date of dissolution of the outgoing legislature: 30 March 2015
Timing of election: Upon normal expiry
Expected date of next elections: May 2020
Number of seats at stake: 650 (full renewal)
Number of candidates: 3 971 (2,938 men, 1,033 women)
Percentage of women candidates: 26%
Number of parties contesting the election: 134
Number of parties winning seats: 11
Alternation of power: No
Number of parties in government: 1
Names of parties in government: Conservative Party
Date of the first session of the new parliament: 18 May 2015
Name of the new Speaker: Mr. John Bercow (former member of the Conservative Party) |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 7 May 2015 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
46'354'197
31'014'319 (66.91%)
|
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
|
|
|
|
| Conservative Party |
330
|
|
|
|
|
| Labour Party |
232
|
|
|
|
|
| Scottish National Party |
56
|
|
|
|
|
| Liberal Democrats |
8
|
|
|
|
|
| Democratic Unionist Party |
8
|
|
|
|
|
| Sinn Fein |
4
|
|
|
|
|
| Plaid Cymru |
3
|
|
|
|
|
| Social Democratic and Labour Party |
3
|
|
|
|
|
| Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) |
2
|
|
|
|
|
| Greens |
1
|
|
|
|
|
| United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) |
1
|
|
|
|
|
| Independents |
1
|
|
|
|
|
| The Speaker |
1
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
459
191
29.38%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Note on the distribution of seats:
The number of seats won by the Conservatives excludes the seat held by the Speaker.
Sources:
British IPU Group (12.05.2015, 01.01.2017)
BRIEFING PAPER Number CBP7186, 18 May 2015, House of Commons Library
http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/mps/?sort=4&type=0
http://commonslibraryblog.com/2015/05/07/general-election-2015-candidates-in-numbers/
http://www.parliament.uk/
http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/mps/?sort=4&type=0
http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/our-work/our-research/electoral-data? |
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Last elections module
