This article lists the
Social Democratic Party (UK)
The Social Democratic Party (SDP) was a centrist to centre-left political party in the United Kingdom.The SDP is widely described as a centrist political party:
*
*
*
*
* The party supported a mixed economy (favouring a system inspired by the ...
's election results in
UK parliamentary elections.
Summary of general election performance
By-elections, 1981-1983
1983 general election
{, class="wikitable sortable"
! rowspan="2" , Constituency
! rowspan="2" , Candidate
! rowspan="2" , Votes
! rowspan="2" , %
! rowspan="2" , Posn
! colspan="4" , 1979
! rowspan="2" , Result compared to 1979
! colspan="5" , 1983
, -
!LAB
!LIB
!CON
!OTH
!LAB
!SDP
!CON
!LIB
!OTH
, -
,
Aberdeen North
,
, 10,118
, 24.7
, 2
,
,
,
,
, LAB hold
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Aberdeen South
,
, 10,372
, 26.2
, 3
,
,
,
,
, CON hold, but SDP and LAB together outpolled them
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Aldridge-Brownhills
,
, 11,599
, 24.4
, 3
,
,
,
,
, CON hold
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Alyn and Deeside
,
, 9,535
, 21.6
, 3
,
,
,
,
, LAB win (new seat)
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Angus East
,
, 4,978
, 11.4
, 3
,
,
,
,
, CON win (new seat)
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Ashford
,
, 13,319
, 27.78
, 2
,
,
,
,
, CON hold
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. The population was 45,198 at the 2011 census. Historically in Lancashire, it is on the north bank of the River Tame, in the foothills of the Pennines, east of Manche ...
,
, 7,521
, 17.8
, 3
,
,
,
,
, LAB hold
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Aylesbury
Aylesbury ( ) is the county town of Buckinghamshire, South East England. It is home to the Roald Dahl Children's Gallery, David Tugwell`s house on Watermead and the Waterside Theatre. It is in central Buckinghamshire, midway between High Wy ...
,
, 15,310
, 29.4
, 2
,
,
,
,
, CON hold
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Banbury
Banbury is a historic market town on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census.
Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshire ...
,
, 13,200
, 26.86
, 2
,
,
,
,
, CON hold
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Banff and Buchan
Banff and Buchan is a committee area of the Aberdeenshire Council, Scotland.
It has a population of 35,742 (2001 Census). Fishing and agriculture are important industries, together with associated processing and service activity.
Banff and Bucha ...
,
, 6,084
, 15.0
, 3
,
,
,
,
, CON win (new seat)
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Barnsley West and Penistone
Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...
,
, 9,624
, 21.7
, 3
,
,
,
,
, LAB hold
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Barrow and Furness
Barrow-in-Furness is a port town in Cumbria, England. Historically in Lancashire, it was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1867 and merged with Dalton-in-Furness Urban District in 1974 to form the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness. In 2023 the ...
,
, 11,079
, 21.7
, 3
,
,
,
,
, SDP split left-wing vote allowing CON gain from LAB
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Basildon
Basildon ( ) is the largest town in the borough of Basildon, within the county of Essex, England. It has a population of 107,123. In 1931 the parish had a population of 1159.
It lies east of Central London, south of the city of Chelmsford and ...
,
, 11,634
, 25.7
, 3
,
,
,
,
, CON hold, but SDP and LAB together outpolled them
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Basingstoke
Basingstoke ( ) is the largest town in the county of Hampshire. It is situated in south-central England and lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon, at the far western edge of The North Downs. It is located north-east of Southa ...
,
Ednyfed Hudson Davies
Gwilym Ednyfed Hudson-Davies (4 December 1929 â 11 January 2018), known as Ednyfed Hudson Davies, was a Welsh politician and Member of Parliament (MP).
He was born in Llanelli, the son of Ebenezer Curig Davies and his wife Enid (nÊe Hughes). Th ...
(defecting Labour MP from
Caerphilly)
, 15,931
, 28.8
, 2
,
,
,
,
, CON hold
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Bassetlaw
,
, 8,124
, 16.7
, 3
,
,
,
,
, LAB hold
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Bath
,
, 17,240
, 36
, 2
,
,
,
,
, CON hold, but SDP and LAB together outpolled them
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Batley and Spen
,
, 11,678
, 21.6
, 3
,
,
,
,
, CON win (new seat), but SDP+LAB outpolled them
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Battersea
Battersea is a large district in south London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and extends along the south bank of the River Thames. It includes the Battersea Park.
History
Batter ...
,
, 7,675
, 17.5
, 3
,
,
,
,
, LAB win (new seat)
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
South West Bedfordshire
,
, 16,036
, 27.8
, 2
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
East Berkshire
,
, 17,868
, 29.9
, 2
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Birmingham Edgbaston
Birmingham Edgbaston is a constituency, represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Preet Gill, a Labour and Co-operative MP.
The most high-profile MP for the constituency was former Prime Minister Neville Chamber ...
,
, 8,167
, 22.4
, 2
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Birmingham Erdington
Birmingham Erdington is a parliamentary constituency in Birmingham, England, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom since 2022 by Paulette Hamilton of the Labour Party.
Members of Parliament
MPs 1918â ...
,
, 7,915
, 21.1
, 3
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Birmingham Selly Oak
,
, 10,613
, 20.7
, 3
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Birmingham Small Heath
,
, 5,722
, 16
, 3
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Birmingham Sparkbrook
,
, 3,416
, 10.4
, 3
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Birmingham Yardley
,
, 8,109
, 23.1
, 3
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Blackburn
Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...
,
, 8,174
, 14.4
, 3
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Blackpool South
,
, 9,417
, 24
, 3
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Blaydon
,
, 12,607
, 26.3
, 3
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Blyth Valley
Blyth Valley was a local government district and borough in south-east Northumberland, England, bordering the North Sea and Tyne and Wear. The two principal towns were Blyth and Cramlington. Other population centres include Seaton Delaval, and ...
,
, 13,340
, 31.8
, 2
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Bolsover
Bolsover is a market town and the administrative centre of the Bolsover (borough), Bolsover District, Derbyshire, England. It is from London, from Sheffield, from Nottingham and from Derby, Derbyshire, Derby. It is the main town in the Bols ...
,
, 7,886
, 16.8
, 3
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
Bradford West
Bradford West is a List of United Kingdom Parliament constituencies, constituency represented in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, UK Parliament since 2015 United Kingdom gene ...
,
Edward Lyons (defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 53.8
, 8.1
, 36.7
, 1.4
, LAB hold (that is, reverted to 1979 status quo)
, 39.7
, 27.1
, 32.9
,
, 0.3
, -
,
Caithness and Sutherland
Caithness and Sutherland was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 to 1997. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
The constituency was c ...
,
Robert Maclennan (defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 41.5
,
, 30.5
, 28.0
, SDP gain from LAB (held 1981 gain)
, 14.3
, 52.0
, 22.7
,
, 11.0
, -
,
Cardiff West
,
Jeffrey Thomas (defecting Labour MP
from
Abertillery
Abertillery (; cy, Abertyleri) is a town and a community of the Ebbw Fach valley in the historic county of Monmouthshire, Wales. Following local government reorganisation it became part of the Blaenau Gwent County Borough administrative area ...
)
,
,
,
, 85.6
,
,
, 14.5
, SDP split left-wing vote allowing CON gain from LAB
, 33.6
, 25.5
, 38.0
,
, 3.0
, -
,
Clwyd South West
,
Tom Ellis
(defecting Labour MP from
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
)
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, CON win in new seat; SDP+LAB together outpolled them
, 27.4
, 30.2
, 33.8
,
, 8.6
, -
,
Crosby Crosby may refer to:
Places
;Canada
*Crosby, Ontario, part of the township of Rideau Lakes, Ontario
*Crosby, Ontario, a neighbourhood in the city of Markham, Ontario
;England
*Crosby, Cumbria
*Crosby, Lincolnshire
*Crosby, Merseyside
** Crosby (U ...
, {{sortname, Shirley, Williams (sitting SDP MP)
,
,
,
, 25.4
, 15.2
, 57.0
, 2.4
, CON hold (that is, reverted to 1979 status quo)
, 10.2
, 42.0
, 47.2
,
, 0.6
, -
,
Dewsbury
Dewsbury is a minster and market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Calder and on an arm of the Calder and Hebble Navigation waterway. It is to the west of Wakefield, east of Hudder ...
,
David Ginsburg (defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 46.7
, 15.5
, 37.8
,
, SDP split left-wing vote allowing CON gain from LAB
, 35.3
, 25.3
, 39.4
,
,
, -
,
Erith and Crayford
,
James Wellbeloved
Alfred James Wellbeloved (29 July 1926 â 10 September 2012) was a British politician who was the MP for Erith and Crayford from 1965 to 1983. He was elected as a member of the Labour Party, but defected to the Social Democratic Party after i ...
(defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 47.3
, 9.5
, 41.5
, 1.8
, SDP split left-wing vote allowing CON gain from LAB
, 27.3
, 34.9
, 37.1
,
, 0.7
, -
,
Glasgow Hillhead
,
Roy Jenkins (sitting SDP MP)
,
,
,
, 34.4
, 14.4
, 41.0
, 10.1
, SDP gain from CON (held 1982 by-election gain)
, 33.4
, 36.2
, 23.5
,
, 6.9
, -
,
Hackney South and Shoreditch
Hackney South and Shoreditch is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2005 by Meg Hillier of Labour Co-op.
History
The seat was created in February 1974 from the former seat of Shoreditch and Finsbury.
...
,
Ronald Brown (defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 54.1
, 9.2
, 28.2
, 8.4
, LAB hold (that is, reverted to 1979 status quo)
, 43.3
, 18.3
, 23.3
, 9.7
, 5.4
, -
,
Hayes and Harlington
,
Neville Sandelson
Neville Devonshire Sandelson (27 November 1923 â 12 January 2002) was a British politician.
Early life
Sandelson was educated at Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge. He was a barrister, called to the bar by Inner Temple in 1946, ...
(defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 48.3
, 9.3
, 40.5
, 2.0
, SDP split left-wing vote allowing CON gain from LAB
, 30.0
, 29.0
, 40.3
,
, 0.8
, -
,
Islington North
Islington North () is a constituency in Greater London represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 1983 by Jeremy Corbyn. He served as Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of Her Majesty's Opposition from 2015 to 2020. Cor ...
,
John Grant (defecting Labour MP
from abolished
Islington Central)
,
,
,
, 52.6
, 8.9
, 33.6
, 4.9
, LAB hold (that is, reverted to 1979 status quo)
, 40.4
, 22.4
, 25.3
,
, 12.0
, -
,
Islington South and Finsbury
,
George Cunningham (defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 52.0
, 8.2
, 34.1
, 5.7
, LAB hold (that is, reverted to 1979 status quo)
, 36.3
, 35.3
, 26.7
,
, 1.7
, -
,
Leicester East
Leicester East is a United Kingdom constituencies, constituency represented in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, UK Parliament since December 2019 by Claudia Webbe, who was ele ...
,
Tom Bradley (defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 46.9
, 9.1
, 41.3
, 2.7
, SDP split left-wing vote allowing CON gain from LAB
, 37.0
, 21.1
, 38.9
,
, 2.9
, -
,
Leyton
Leyton () is a town in east London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It borders Walthamstow to the north, Leytonstone to the east, and Stratford to the south, with Clapton, Hackney Wick and Homerton, across the River L ...
,
Bryan Magee
Bryan Edgar Magee (; 12 April 1930 â 26 July 2019) was a British philosopher, broadcaster, politician and author, best known for bringing philosophy to a popular audience.
Early life
Born of working-class parents in Hoxton, London, in 1930, w ...
(defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 51.4
, 8.3
, 37.4
, 2.9
, LAB hold (that is, reverted to 1979 status quo)
, 43.5
, 24.9
, 31.6
,
,
, -
,
Liverpool Broadgreen
Liverpool Broadgreen was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Broadgreen suburb of Liverpool. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
The constituency was created for t ...
,
Richard Crawshaw
Richard Crawshaw, Baron Crawshaw of Aintree, OBE (25 September 1917 â 16 July 1986) was elected as a British Labour Party Member of Parliament in 1964 but joined the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in 1981.
Early life
Crawshaw was born in Sa ...
(defecting Labour MP
from abolished
Liverpool Toxteth)
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, LAB win in new seat
, 40.9
, 11.2
, 32.6
, 15.3
,
, -
,
Liverpool West Derby
Liverpool, West Derby is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Ian Byrne of the Labour Party.
Boundaries
1885â1918: The Municipal Borough of Liverpool ward of West Derby.
1918â1950: The ...
,
Eric Ogden
,
,
,
, 55.5
, 9.3
, 35.3
,
, LAB hold (that is, reverted to 1979 status quo)
, 54.5
, 18.0
, 27.5
,
,
, -
,
Newcastle Central
,
John Horam
John Rhodes Horam, Baron Horam (born 7 March 1939) is a Conservative politician in the United Kingdom. He is the only MP since the Second World War to have sat in the House of Commons for three different political parties, latterly as the Conser ...
(defecting Labour MP
from abolished
Gateshead West)
,
,
,
, 67.3
, 13.4
, 19.3
,
, SDP split left-wing vote allowing CON gain from LAB
, 35.8
, 22.3
, 40.8
,
, 1.1
, -
,
Newcastle upon Tyne East
,
Mike Thomas (defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 55.1
, 8.5
, 36.5
,
, LAB hold (that is, reverted to 1979 status quo)
, 45.5
, 26.7
, 27.8
,
,
, -
,
North West Norfolk
North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography.
Etymology
The word ''north'' is ...
,
Christopher Brocklebank-Fowler
Christopher Brocklebank-Fowler (13 January 1934 â 29 May 2020) was a British politician. In 1981, he defected to the Social Democratic Party (SDP), the only Conservative Member of Parliament to do so. He then joined the Liberal Democrats, fol ...
(defecting Conservative MP)
,
,
,
, 39.0
, 9.9
, 51.0
,
, CON hold, but SDP and LAB together outpolled them
, 18.9
, 37.6
, 43.5
,
,
, -
,
Plymouth Devonport
,
David Owen
David Anthony Llewellyn Owen, Baron Owen, (born 2 July 1938) is a British politician and physician who served as Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs as a Labour Party (UK), Labour Party MP under James Callaghan from 1977 t ...
(defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 47.4
, 6.8
, 44.6
, 1.3
, SDP gain from LAB (held 1981 gain)
, 21.0
, 44.3
, 33.8
,
, 0.9
, -
,
Renfrew West and Inverclyde
(replaced
West Renfrewshire)
,
Dickson Mabon
Jesse Dickson Mabon (1 November 1925 â 10 April 2008), sometimes known as Dick Mabon, was a Scottish politician, physician and business executive. He was the founder of The Manifesto Group of Labour MPs, an alliance of moderate MPs who foug ...
(defecting Labour MP
from abolished
Greenock & Port Glasgow)
,
,
,
, 44.5
, 11.4
, 31.0
, 13.1
, SDP split left-wing vote allowing CON gain from LAB
, 29.0
, 29.5
, 32.7
,
, 8.8
, -
,
Ross, Cromarty and Skye
(replaced
Ross and Cromarty
Ross and Cromarty ( gd, Ros agus Cromba), sometimes referred to as Ross-shire and Cromartyshire, is a variously defined area in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. There is a registration county and a lieutenancy area in current use, the latt ...
)
,
Charles Kennedy
Charles Peter Kennedy (25 November 1959 â 1 June 2015) was a British Liberal Democrat politician who served as Leader of the Liberal Democrats from 1999 to 2006, and was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ross, Skye and Lochaber from 1983 ...
,
,
,
, 20.1
, 13.9
, 42.4
, 23.6
, SDP gain from CON
, 14.0
, 38.5
, 33.7
,
, 13.9
, -
,
Southampton Itchen
Southampton, Itchen is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Royston Smith, a Conservative member of parliament. Discounting the Speaker (of the House of Commons) returned in the early 1970s in two ...
,
Bob Mitchell (defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 46.3
, 10.1
, 43.6
,
, SDP split left-wing vote allowing CON gain from LAB
, 27.1
, 31.5
, 41.5
,
,
, -
,
Stockport
Stockport is a town and borough in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here.
Most of the town is within ...
,
Thomas McNally (defecting Labour MP
from abolished
Stockport South)
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, SDP split left-wing vote allowing CON win in new seat
, 29.0
, 27.6
, 42.1
,
, 1.2
, -
,
Stockton North
(replaced
Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees, often simply referred to as Stockton, is a market town in the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees in County Durham, England. It is on the northern banks of the River Tees, part of the Teesside built-up area. The town had an estimated ...
)
,
William Rodgers (defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 53.1
, 9.2
, 36.2
, 1.5
, LAB hold (that is, reverted to 1979 status quo)
, 37.1
, 29.6
, 33.3
,
,
, -
,
Stockton South
(replaced
Thornaby
Thornaby-on-Tees, commonly referred to as Thornaby, is a town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish on the River Tees's southern bank. It is in the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees, North Yorkshire, England. The parish had a population of 24,74 ...
)
,
Ian Wrigglesworth
Ian William Wrigglesworth, Baron Wrigglesworth (born 8 December 1939) is a Liberal Democrat peer.
Education
He was born in Stockton-on-Tees, brought up in Norton-on-Tees, and educated at Stockton Grammar School, Stockton-Billingham Techni ...
(defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 51.1
, 9.2
, 39.1
, 0.5
, SDP gain from LAB (held 1981 gain)
, 26.3
, 36.8
, 36.6
,
, 0.4
, -
,
Woolwich
Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich.
The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...
(replaced
Woolwich East)
,
John Cartwright (defecting Labour MP)
,
,
,
, 58.9
, 8.1
, 30.5
, 2.4
, SDP gain from LAB (held 1981 gain)
, 33.4
, 40.5
, 25.1
,
, 1.0
, -
,
Worsley
Worsley () is a village in the City of Salford, Greater Manchester, England, which in 2014 had a population of 10,090. It lies along Worsley Brook, west of Manchester.
Within the boundaries of the Historic counties of England, historic county ...
,
John Roper (defecting Labour MP
from
Farnworth
Farnworth is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, southeast of Bolton, 4.3 miles south-west of Bury (7 km), and northwest of Manchester.
Historically in Lancashire, Farnworth lies on the River Ir ...
)
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, LAB win in new seat
, 40.3
, 27.1
, 32.6
,
,
, -
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, -
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
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References
E