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The 1997 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 1 May 1997. The governing
Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...
led by Prime Minister John Major was defeated in a landslide by the Labour Party led by
Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of t ...
, achieving a 179 seat majority. The political backdrop of campaigning focused on public opinion towards a change in government. Blair, as
Labour Leader The ''Labour Leader'' was a British socialist newspaper published for almost one hundred years. It was later renamed ''New Leader'' and ''Socialist Leader'', before finally taking the name ''Labour Leader'' again. 19th century The origins of th ...
, focused on transforming his party through a more
centrist Centrism is a political outlook or position involving acceptance or support of a balance of social equality and a degree of social hierarchy while opposing political changes that would result in a significant shift of society strongly to the ...
policy platform, entitled ' New Labour', with promises of
devolution Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territories ...
referendums for
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...
and
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
, fiscal responsibility, and a decision to nominate more female politicians for election through the use of
all-women shortlists All-women shortlists (AWS) is an affirmative action practice intended to increase the proportion of female Members of Parliament (MPs) in the United Kingdom, allowing only women to stand in particular constituencies for a particular political p ...
from which to choose candidates. Major sought to rebuild public trust in the Conservatives following a series of scandals, including the events of Black Wednesday in 1992, through campaigning on the strength of the economic recovery following the
early 1990s recession The early 1990s recession describes the period of economic downturn affecting much of the Western world in the early 1990s. The impacts of the recession contributed in part to the 1992 U.S. presidential election victory of Bill Clinton over incu ...
, but faced divisions within the party over the UK's membership of the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
. Opinion polls during campaigning showed strong support for Labour due to Blair's personal popularity, and Blair won a personal public endorsement from '' The Sun'' newspaper two months before the vote. The final result of the election on 2 May 1997 revealed that Labour had won a landslide majority, making a net gain of 146 seats and winning 43.2% of the vote. 133
Members of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
lost their seats. The Conservatives, meanwhile, suffered defeat with a net loss of 178 seats, winning 30.7% of the vote. The Liberal Democrats, under the leadership of Paddy Ashdown, made a net gain of 28 seats, winning 16.8% of the vote. The election ended 18 years of Conservative government, its result the party's worst defeat since 1906; it was left devoid of any MPs outside England, with only 17 MPs north of the Midlands, and with less than 20% of MPs in London. Immediately following the election Major resigned both as Prime Minister and as party leader. Labour's victory, the largest achieved in its history and by any political party in British politics since the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, brought about the party's first of three consecutive terms in power (lasting a total of 13 years), with Blair as the newly appointed
Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...
. The Liberal Democrats' success in the election, in part due to anti-Conservative tactical voting, both strengthened Ashdown's leadership and the party's position as a strong
third party Third party may refer to: Business * Third-party source, a supplier company not owned by the buyer or seller * Third-party beneficiary, a person who could sue on a contract, despite not being an active party * Third-party insurance, such as a V ...
, having won the highest number of seats by any third party since 1929. Although the Conservatives lost many ministers such as Michael Portillo, Tony Newton,
Malcolm Rifkind Sir Malcolm Leslie Rifkind (born 21 June 1946) is a British politician who served in the cabinets of Margaret Thatcher and John Major from 1986 to 1997, and most recently as chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament fro ...
, Ian Lang and William Waldegrave and controversial MPs such as Neil Hamilton and
Jonathan Aitken Jonathan William Patrick Aitken (born 30 August 1942) is a British author, Church of England priest, former prisoner and former Conservative Party politician. Beginning his career in journalism, he was elected to Parliament in 1974 (serving u ...
, some of the Conservative newcomers in this election were future Prime Minister
Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Lady May (; née Brasier; born 1 October 1956) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served in David Cameron's cab ...
, future Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond, future Leader of the House Andrew Lansley, as well as future Speaker John Bercow. Meanwhile, Labour newcomers included future Cabinet and Shadow Cabinet members Hazel Blears, Ben Bradshaw, Yvette Cooper, Caroline Flint, Barry Gardiner, Alan Johnson, Ruth Kelly, John McDonnell, Stephen Twigg and Rosie Winterton, as well as future Scottish Labour Leader Jim Murphy and future Speaker
Lindsay Hoyle Sir Lindsay Harvey Hoyle (born 10 June 1957)'HOYLE, Hon. Lindsay (Harvey)', Who's Who 2013, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2013; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2012 ; online edn, Nov 201 Retrieved 31 December 20 ...
. The election of 120 women, including 101 to the Labour benches, came to be seen as a watershed moment in female political representation in the UK.


Overview

The British economy had been in recession at the time of the 1992 election, which the Conservatives had won, and although the recession had ended within a year, events such as Black Wednesday had tarnished the Conservative government's reputation for economic management. Labour had elected John Smith as its party leader in 1992, but his death from a heart attack in 1994 paved the way for
Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of t ...
to become Labour leader. Blair brought the party closer to the political
centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...
and abolished the party's Clause IV in their constitution, which had committed them to mass nationalisation of industry. Labour also reversed its policy on unilateral nuclear disarmament and the events of Black Wednesday allowed Labour to promise better economic management under the Chancellorship of
Gordon Brown James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in Tony ...
. A manifesto, entitled
New Labour, New Life for Britain ''New Labour, New Life for Britain'' was a political manifesto published in 1996 by the British Labour Party. The party had recently rebranded itself as New Labour under Tony Blair. The manifesto set out the party's new "Third Way" centrist approa ...
was released in 1996 and outlined five key pledges: * Class sizes to be cut to 30 or under for 5-, 6- and 7-year-olds by using money from the assisted places scheme. * Fast track punishment for persistent young offenders, by halving the time from arrest to sentencing. * Cut NHS waiting lists by treating an extra 100,000 patients as a first step by releasing £100 million saved from NHS red tape. * Get 250,000 under-25-year-olds off benefit and into work by using money from a windfall levy on the privatised utilities. * No rise in income tax rates, cut VAT on heating to 5%, and keeping inflation and interest rates as low as possible. Disputes within the Conservative government over
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
issues, and a variety of "sleaze" allegations, had severely affected the government's popularity. Despite the strong economic recovery and substantial fall in unemployment in the four years leading up to the election, the rise in Conservative support was only marginal, with all of the major opinion polls having shown Labour in a comfortable lead since late 1992.


Loss of parliamentary majority

Following the 1992 general election, the Conservatives remained in government with 336 of the 651 House of Commons seats. Through a series of defections and by-election defeats, the government gradually lost its absolute majority in the House of Commons. By 1997, the Conservatives held only 324 House of Commons seats (and had not won a by-election since Richmond in 1989). * 1993
Judith Chaplin Sybil Judith Chaplin , known as Judith Chaplin (née Schofield; 19 August 193919 February 1993), was a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. Career Chaplin was elected councillor for Norfolk County Council 1975, following her h ...
(Newbury) died,
by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to ...
won by Liberal Democrats. * 1993
Robert Adley Robert James Adley (2 March 1935 – 13 May 1993) was a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom and railway enthusiast. In the 1970s Adley was part-time Marketing Director for Holiday Inn (UK). He would brief his agency (Alexander ...
(Christchurch) died,
by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to ...
won by Liberal Democrats. * 1994
Stephen Milligan Stephen David Wyatt Milligan (12 May 1948 – 7 February 1994) was a British Conservative politician and journalist. He held a number of senior journalistic posts until his election to serve as Member of Parliament (MP) for Eastleigh in 1992. ...
(Eastleigh) died,
by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to ...
won by Liberal Democrats. * 1994 John Blackburn (Dudley West) died,
by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to ...
won by Labour. * 1995 Sir Nicholas Fairbairn (Perth and Kinross) died,
by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to ...
won by Scottish National Party. * 1995 Geoffrey Dickens (Littleborough and Saddleworth) died,
by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to ...
won by Liberal Democrats. * 1995 Alan Howarth (Stratford-on-Avon) defected from Conservative to Labour. * 1995
Emma Nicholson Emma Harriet Nicholson, Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne (born 16 October 1941) is a British politician, who has been a life peer since 1997. She was elected as the Conservative Member of Parliament for Torridge and West Devon in 1987, bef ...
(Devon West and Torridge) defected from Conservatives to Liberal Democrats. * 1996 Sir David Lightbown (South East Staffordshire) died,
by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to ...
won by Labour. * 1996 Peter Thurnham (Bolton North East) defected from Conservatives to Liberal Democrats. * 1996
Barry Porter George Barrington Porter (11 June 1939 – 3 November 1996) was a British lawyer and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician. Early life Educated at Birkenhead School and the University of Oxford, he trained as a solicitor and w ...
(Wirral South) died,
by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to ...
won by Labour. * 1997
Iain Mills Iain Campbell Mills (21 April 1940 – 16 January 1997) was a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. Mills was educated in southern Africa and subsequently worked as a Market Planning Executive for Dunlop. He served as a coun ...
(Meriden) died, no by-election held due to imminent general election * 1997 Sir George Gardiner (Reigate) defected from Conservatives to Referendum Party.


Timing

The previous Parliament first sat on 29 April 1992. The
Parliament Act 1911 The Parliament Act 1911 (1 & 2 Geo. 5 c. 13) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is constitutionally important and partly governs the relationship between the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two Houses of Pa ...
required at the time for each Parliament to be dissolved before the fifth anniversary of its first sitting; therefore, the latest date the dissolution and the summoning of the next parliament could have been held on was 28 April 1997. The 1985 amendment of the Representation of the People Act 1983 required that the election must take place on the eleventh working day after the deadline for nomination papers, which in turn must be no more than six working days after the next parliament was summoned. Therefore, the latest date the election could have been held on was 22 May 1997 (which happened to be a Thursday). British elections (and
referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a Representative democr ...
s) have been held on Thursdays by convention since the 1930s, but can be held on other working days.


Campaign

Prime Minister John Major called the election on Monday 17 March 1997, ensuring the formal campaign would be unusually long, at six weeks (Parliament was dissolved on 8 April). The election was scheduled for 1 May, to coincide with the
local elections In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct v ...
on the same day. This set a precedent, as the three subsequent general elections were also held alongside the May local elections. The Conservatives argued that a long campaign would expose Labour and allow the Conservative message to be heard. However, Major was accused of arranging an early dissolution to protect Neil Hamilton from a pending parliamentary report into his conduct: a report that Major had earlier guaranteed would be published before the election. In March 1997, soon after the election was called,
Asda Asda Stores Ltd. () (often styled as ASDA) is a British supermarket chain. It is headquartered in Leeds, England. The company was founded in 1949 when the Asquith family merged their retail business with the Associated Dairies company of Yorks ...
introduced a range of election-themed beers, these being 'Major's Mild', 'Tony's Tipple' and 'Ashdown's Ale'.


Conservative campaign

Major hoped that a long campaign would expose Labour's "hollowness" and the Conservative campaign emphasised stability, as did its manifesto title 'You can only be sure with the Conservatives'. However, the campaign was beset by deep-set problems, such as the rise of
James Goldsmith Sir James Michael Goldsmith (26 February 1933 – 18 July 1997) was a French-British financier, tycoon''Billionaire: The Life and Times of Sir James Goldsmith'' by Ivan Fallon and politician who was a member of the Goldsmith family. His cont ...
's
Referendum Party The Referendum Party was a Eurosceptic, single-issue political party that was active in the United Kingdom from 1994 to 1997. The party's sole objective was for a referendum to be held on the nature of the UK's membership of the European Union ...
which advocated a referendum on continued membership of the European Union. The party threatened to take away many right-leaning voters from the Conservatives. Furthermore, about 200 candidates broke with official Conservative policy to oppose British membership of the single European currency.Travis, Alan (17 April 1997). "Rebels' seven-year march". ''The Guardian'' (London). Major fought back, saying: "Whether you agree with me or disagree with me; like me or loathe me, don't bind my hands when I am negotiating on behalf of the British nation." The moment is remembered as one of the defining, and most surreal, moments of the election. Meanwhile, there was also division amongst the Conservative cabinet, with Chancellor
Kenneth Clarke Kenneth Harry Clarke, Baron Clarke of Nottingham, (born 2 July 1940), often known as Ken Clarke, is a British politician who served as Home Secretary from 1992 to 1993 and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1993 to 1997 as well as serving as de ...
describing the views of Home Secretary
Michael Howard Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne (born Michael Hecht; 7 July 1941) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005. He previously held cabinet posit ...
on Europe as "paranoid and xenophobic nonsense". The Conservatives also struggled to come up with a definitive theme to attack Labour, with some strategists arguing for an approach which castigated Labour for "stealing Tory clothes" (copying their positions), with others making the case for a more confrontational approach, stating that "New Labour" was just a façade for "old Labour". The
New Labour, New Danger New Labour, New Danger was an advertising campaign run in the United Kingdom by the Conservative Party during the run up to the 1997 General Election. It was conceived by Creative Director Martin Casson at advertising agency M&C Saatchi, and re ...
poster, which depicted
Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of t ...
with demon eyes, was an example of the latter strategy. Major veered between the two approaches, which left
Conservative Central Office The Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ), formerly known as Conservative Central Office (CCO), is the headquarters of the British Conservative Party, housing its central staff and committee members, including campaign coordinators and man ...
staff frustrated. As Andrew Cooper explained: "We repeatedly tried and failed to get him to understand that you couldn't say that they were dangerous and copying you at the same time." In any case, the campaign failed to gain much traction, and the Conservatives went down to a landslide defeat at the polls.


Labour campaign

Labour ran a slick campaign that emphasised the splits within the Conservative government and argued that the country needed a more centrist administration. It thus successfully picked up dissatisfied Conservative voters, particularly moderate and suburban ones.
Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of t ...
, who was personally highly popular, was very much the centrepiece of the campaign and proved a highly effective campaigner. The Labour campaign was reminiscent of those of
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...
for the US Presidency, focusing on centrist themes as well as adopting policies more commonly associated with the right, such as cracking down on crime and fiscal responsibility. The influence of political "spin" came into great effect for Labour at this point, as media centric figures such as
Alastair Campbell Alastair John Campbell (born 25 May 1957) is a British journalist, author, strategist, broadcaster and activist known for his roles during Tony Blair's leadership of the Labour Party. Campbell worked as Blair's spokesman and campaign director ...
and
Peter Mandelson Peter Benjamin Mandelson, Baron Mandelson (born 21 October 1953) is a British Labour Party politician who served as First Secretary of State from 2009 to 2010. He was President of the Board of Trade in 1998 and from 2008 to 2010. He is the ...
provided a clear cut campaign, and establishing a relatively new political brand " New Labour" with enviable success.


Liberal Democrat campaign

The Liberal Democrats had suffered a disappointing performance in 1992, but they were very much strengthened in 1997 due in part to potential tactical voting between Labour and Lib Dem supporters in Conservative marginal constituencies, particularly in the south - which explains why while given their share of the vote decreased, their number of seats nearly doubled. The Lib Dems promised to increase education funding paid for by a 1p increase in income tax.


Endorsements

*In a sign of the change of direction which 'New Labour' represented, they were endorsed by '' The Sun'' (with a famous front page "The Sun Backs Blair"), as well as the more left-leaning newspapers the ''
Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily Tabloid journalism, tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its Masthead (British publishing), masthead was simpl ...
'', ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...
'' and ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...
''. *The Conservatives were endorsed by the ''
Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...
'', the ''
Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet ...
'', ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...
'' and ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ( ...
''.


Opinion polling


Notional 1992 results

The election was fought under new boundaries, with a net increase of eight seats compared to the 1992 election (651 to 659). Changes listed here are from the notional 1992 result, had it been fought on the boundaries established in 1997. These notional results were calculated by Colin Rallings and Michael Thrasher and were used by all media organisations at the time.


Results

Labour won a
landslide victory A landslide victory is an election result in which the victorious candidate or party wins by an overwhelming margin. The term became popular in the 1800s to describe a victory in which the opposition is "buried", similar to the way in which a geol ...
with its largest parliamentary majority (179) to date. On the BBC's election night programme Professor Anthony King described the result of the exit poll, which accurately predicted a Labour landslide, as being akin to "an asteroid hitting the planet and destroying practically all life on Earth". After years of trying, Labour had convinced the electorate that they would usher in a new age of prosperity—their policies, organisation and tone of optimism slotting perfectly into place. Labour's victory was largely credited to the charisma of
Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of t ...
, as well as a Labour public relations machine managed by
Alastair Campbell Alastair John Campbell (born 25 May 1957) is a British journalist, author, strategist, broadcaster and activist known for his roles during Tony Blair's leadership of the Labour Party. Campbell worked as Blair's spokesman and campaign director ...
and
Peter Mandelson Peter Benjamin Mandelson, Baron Mandelson (born 21 October 1953) is a British Labour Party politician who served as First Secretary of State from 2009 to 2010. He was President of the Board of Trade in 1998 and from 2008 to 2010. He is the ...
. Between the 1992 election and the 1997 election there had also been major steps to "modernise" the party, including scrapping
Clause IV Clause IV is part of the Labour Party Rule Book, which sets out the aims and values of the (UK) Labour Party. The original clause, adopted in 1918, called for common ownership of industry, and proved controversial in later years; Hugh Gaitskell a ...
that had committed the party to extending public ownership of industry. Labour had suddenly seized the middle ground of the political spectrum, attracting voters much further to the right than their traditional working class or left wing support. In the early hours of 2 May 1997 a party was held at the
Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I li ...
, in which Blair stated that "a new dawn has broken, has it not?" The election was a crushing defeat for the Conservative Party, with the party having its lowest percentage share of the popular vote since
1832 Events January–March * January 6 – Abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison founds the New-England Anti-Slavery Society. * January 13 – The Christmas Rebellion of slaves is brought to an end in Jamaica, after the island's white plant ...
under the
Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister ...
's leadership, being wiped out in Scotland and
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
. A number of prominent Conservative MPs lost their seats in the election, including Michael Portillo,
Malcolm Rifkind Sir Malcolm Leslie Rifkind (born 21 June 1946) is a British politician who served in the cabinets of Margaret Thatcher and John Major from 1986 to 1997, and most recently as chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament fro ...
, Edwina Currie, David Mellor, Neil Hamilton and
Norman Lamont Norman Stewart Hughson Lamont, Baron Lamont of Lerwick, (born 8 May 1942) is a British politician and former Conservative MP for Kingston-upon-Thames. He served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1990 until 1993. He was created a life peer in ...
. Such was the extent of Conservative losses at the election that
Cecil Parkinson Cecil Edward Parkinson, Baron Parkinson, (1 September 1931 – 22 January 2016) was a British Conservative Party politician and cabinet minister. A chartered accountant by training, he entered Parliament in November 1970, and was appointed a ...
, speaking on the BBC's election night programme, joked upon the Conservatives winning their second seat that he was pleased that the subsequent election for the leadership would be contested. The Liberal Democrats stood on a more left-wing manifesto than Labour, and more than doubled their number of seats thanks to the use of tactical voting against the Conservatives. Although their share of the vote fell slightly, their total of 46 MPs was the highest for any UK Liberal party since
David Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for lea ...
led the party to 59 seats in 1929. The Referendum Party, which sought a
referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a Representative democr ...
on the United Kingdom's relationship with the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
, came fourth in terms of votes with 800,000 votes mainly from former Conservative voters, but won no seats in parliament. The six parties with the next highest votes stood only in either
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...
, Northern Ireland or
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
; in order, they were the
Scottish National Party The Scottish National Party (SNP; sco, Scots National Pairty, gd, Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic political party in Scotland. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence from th ...
, the
Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule m ...
, the Social Democratic and Labour Party,
Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. Plaid wa ...
,
Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gr ...
, and the
Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a unionist, loyalist, and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who led the party for the next 37 years. Currently led by J ...
. In the previously safe seat of Tatton, where incumbent Conservative MP Neil Hamilton was facing charges of having taken
cash for questions The "cash-for-questions affair" was a political scandal of the 1990s in the United Kingdom. It began in October 1994 when ''The Guardian'' newspaper alleged that London's most successful parliamentary lobbyist, Ian Greer of Ian Greer Associate ...
, the Labour and Liberal Democrat parties decided not to field candidates in order that an independent candidate,
Martin Bell Martin Bell, (born 31 August 1938) is a British UNICEF (UNICEF UK) Ambassador, a former broadcast war reporter and former independent politician who became the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tatton from 1997 to 2001. He is sometimes known as " ...
, would have a better chance of winning the seat, which he did with a comfortable margin. The result declared for the constituency of
Winchester Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...
showed a margin of victory of just two votes for the Liberal Democrats. The defeated Conservative candidate mounted a successful legal challenge to the result on the grounds that errors by election officials (failures to stamp certain votes) had changed the result; the court ruled the result invalid and ordered a
by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to ...
on 20 November which was won by the Liberal Democrats with a much larger majority, causing much recrimination in the Conservative Party about the decision to challenge the original result in the first place. This election saw a doubling of the number of women in parliament, from 60 elected in 1992 to 120 elected in 1997. 101 of them (controversially described as
Blair Babe Blair Babes or Blair's Babes is a term sometimes used to refer to the 101 female Members of Parliament (MPs) from the Labour Party elected to the British House of Commons in Labour's landslide general election victory in 1997, after images of th ...
s) were on the Labour benches, a number driven by the Labour Party’s 1993 policy (ruled illegally discriminatory in 1996) of
all-women shortlist All-women shortlists (AWS) is an affirmative action practice intended to increase the proportion of female Members of Parliament (MPs) in the United Kingdom, allowing only women to stand in particular constituencies for a particular political p ...
s. This election has therefore been widely seen as a watershed moment for representation of women in the UK. This election marked the start of Labour government for the next 13 years, lasting until the formation of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition in 2010. : :


Results by constituent country


Defeated MPs


MPs who lost their seats


Post-election events

The poor results for the Conservative Party led to infighting, with the One Nation group, Tory Reform Group, and right-wing Maastricht Rebels blaming each other for the defeat. Party chairman
Brian Mawhinney Brian Stanley Mawhinney, Baron Mawhinney, (26 July 1940 – 9 November 2019) was a British Conservative Party politician. He was a member of the Cabinet from 1994 to 1997 and a member of Parliament (MP) from 1979 to 2005. Early life Mawhinn ...
said on the night of the election that defeat was due to disillusionment with 18 years of Conservative rule. John Major resigned as party leader, saying "When the curtain falls, it is time to leave the stage". Following the defeat, the Conservatives began their longest continuous spell in
opposition Opposition may refer to: Arts and media * ''Opposition'' (Altars EP), 2011 EP by Christian metalcore band Altars * The Opposition (band), a London post-punk band * '' The Opposition with Jordan Klepper'', a late-night television series on Com ...
in the history of the present day (post– Tamworth Manifesto) Conservative Party - and indeed the longest such spell for any incarnation of the
Tories A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. The ...
/Conservatives since the 1760s and the end of the Whig Supremacy under Kings George I and George II - lasting 13 years, including the whole of the
2000s File:2000s decade montage3.png, From top left, clockwise: The World Trade Center on fire and the Statue of Liberty during the 9/11 attacks in 2001; the euro enters into European currency in 2002; a statue of Saddam Hussein being toppled during th ...
. Throughout this period, their representation in the Commons remained consistently below 200 MPs. Meanwhile, Paddy Ashdown's continued leadership of the Liberal Democrats was assured, and they were felt to be in a position to build positively as a strong third party into the new millennium, culminating in their sharing power in the 2010 coalition with the Conservatives.


Internet coverage

With the huge rise in internet use since the previous general election,
BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadc ...
created a special website - BBC Politics 97 - covering the election. This site was an experiment for the efficiency of an online news service which was due for launch later in the year.


See also

*
List of MPs elected in the 1997 United Kingdom general election This is a list of Members of Parliament (MPs) elected to the House of Commons at the 1997 general election, held on 1 May. The list is arranged by constituency. New MPs elected since the general election are noted at the bottom of the page. ...
* 1997 United Kingdom general election in England * 1997 United Kingdom general election in Scotland * 1997 United Kingdom general election in Northern Ireland *
1997 United Kingdom general election in Wales These are the results of the 1997 United Kingdom general election in Wales. The election was held on 1 May 1997 and all 40 seats in Wales were contested. The Labour Party won a landslide majority of Welsh MPs, gaining seven seats for a total ...
*
1997 United Kingdom local elections The United Kingdom local elections took place on 1 May 1997. Elections took place for all of the English country councils, some English unitary authorities and all of the Northern Ireland districts. The elections were held on the same day ...


Footnotes


References


Further reading

* Butler, David and Dennis Kavanagh. ''The British General Election of 1997'' (1997), the standard scholarly study *


Manifestos


Labour (New Labour, New Life For Britain)
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20120314155214/http://www.libparty.demon.co.uk/ge97/manifest.htm Liberal Party (Radical ideas – not the dead centre)br>UK Independence PartyScottish National Party (Yes We Can Win the Best for Scotland)
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20110602193652/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/comm97.htm Communist Party of Great Britain


External links


BBC Election Website


– Link to 1997 election manifestos of various parties.
Catalogue of 1997 general election ephemera
at th
Archives Division
of the
London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 milli ...
. {{New Labour 1997 elections in the United Kingdom
1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...
May 1997 events in the United Kingdom John Major Tony Blair