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.

1868 United Kingdom general election

17 November – 7 December 1868 (1868-11-17 – 1868-12-07)
All 658 seats in the House of Commons 330 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party   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 18 18 Popular vote 1,428,776 903,318 Percentage 61.2% 38.7% Swing 1.7 pp 1.8 pp
Colours denote the winning party
Composition of the House of Commons after the election
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.

Results

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

Total votes cast: 2,333,251.

Voting summary

Popular vote Liberal   61.24% Conservative   38.71% Others   0.05%

Seats summary

Parliamentary seats Liberal   58.81% Conservative   41.19% Others   0.0%

Regional results

Great Britain

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

England

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

Scotland

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

Wales

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

Ireland

Main article: 1868 United Kingdom general election in Ireland

Party		Candidates	Unopposed	Seats	Seats change	Votes	%	% change
	Liberal	85	41	66	8	54,461	57.9	2.3
	Irish 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

Universities

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 also

• List of MPs elected in the 1868 United Kingdom general election

References and further reading

• 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 and Social History. 10 (3): 369–395. doi:10.2752/147800413X13661166397229. S2CID 143879878. (covers 1860 to 1890).

External links

• Spartacus: Political Parties and Election Results: 1868 General Election