Dorset — UK General Election Results
Compiled by EveryElectionResult.com's data team · Last updated 2026-08-30
Dorset elected 3 MPs at the 1880 general election: Edward Henry Trafalgar Digby (Conservative) and John Floyer (Conservative) and William Henry Berkeley Portman (Liberal). This page covers every general election in Dorset from 1832 to 1880.
This constituency elected more than one MP at once in some years. Before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 (and in a shrinking number of boroughs through 1948), most UK constituencies elected two or more MPs together by "multi-member plurality" (block vote): each elector could cast one vote per available seat, and the top vote-getters overall were all elected. In those elections below, "Elected" lists every MP returned, "Votes" is the count that secured the last seat, and "Majority" is the gap between that seat and the first candidate who missed out.
Full Election History, 1832–1880
| Election |
Elected |
Votes |
Vote Share |
Runner-up |
Majority |
Turnout |
| 1832 |
Anthony Ashley-Cooper (Conservative); William John Bankes (Conservative); William Francis Spencer Ponsonby (Whig)
|
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record |
0.0% |
| 1835 |
Anthony Ashley-Cooper (Conservative); Henry Charles Sturt (Conservative); William Francis Spencer Ponsonby (Whig)
|
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record |
0.0% |
| 1837 |
Anthony Ashley-Cooper (Conservative); Henry Charles Sturt (Conservative); John George Charles Fox-Strangways (Whig)
|
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record |
0.0% |
| 1841 |
Anthony Ashley-Cooper (Conservative); Henry Charles Sturt (Conservative); George Bankes (Conservative)
|
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record |
0.0% |
| 1847 |
George Bankes (Conservative); John Floyer (Conservative); Henry Ker Seymer (Conservative)
|
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record |
0.0% |
| 1852 |
George Bankes (Conservative); John Floyer (Conservative); Henry Ker Seymer (Conservative)
|
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record |
0.0% |
| 1857 |
William Henry Berkeley Portman (Whig); Henry Gerard Sturt (Conservative); Henry Ker Seymer (Conservative)
|
2,177 |
27.1% (top seat) |
John Floyer (Conservative) |
18 (0.2 pts) |
48.2% |
| 1859 |
Henry Gerard Sturt (Conservative); Henry Ker Seymer (Conservative); William Henry Berkeley Portman (Liberal)
|
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record |
0.0% |
| 1865 |
Henry Gerard Sturt (Conservative); John Floyer (Conservative); William Henry Berkeley Portman (Liberal)
|
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record |
0.0% |
| 1868 |
Henry Gerard Sturt (Conservative); John Floyer (Conservative); William Henry Berkeley Portman (Liberal)
|
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record |
0.0% |
| 1874 |
Henry Gerard Sturt (Conservative); John Floyer (Conservative); William Henry Berkeley Portman (Liberal)
|
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record |
0.0% |
| 1880 |
Edward Henry Trafalgar Digby (Conservative); John Floyer (Conservative); William Henry Berkeley Portman (Liberal)
|
0 |
0.0% (top seat) |
None (None) |
None (None pts) |
1.3% |
Full Result Breakdown by Election
1832 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| Anthony Ashley-Cooper |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| William John Bankes |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| William Francis Spencer Ponsonby |
Whig |
Unopposed |
Yes |
1835 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| Anthony Ashley-Cooper |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| Henry Charles Sturt |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| William Francis Spencer Ponsonby |
Whig |
Unopposed |
Yes |
1837 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| Anthony Ashley-Cooper |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| Henry Charles Sturt |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| John George Charles Fox-Strangways |
Whig |
Unopposed |
Yes |
1841 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| Anthony Ashley-Cooper |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| Henry Charles Sturt |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| George Bankes |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
1847 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| George Bankes |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| John Floyer |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| Henry Ker Seymer |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
1852 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| George Bankes |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| John Floyer |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| Henry Ker Seymer |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
1857 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| William Henry Berkeley Portman |
Whig |
2,430 | 27.1% |
Yes |
| Henry Gerard Sturt |
Conservative |
2,197 | 24.5% |
Yes |
| Henry Ker Seymer |
Conservative |
2,177 | 24.3% |
Yes |
| John Floyer |
Conservative |
2,159 | 24.1% |
No |
1859 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| Henry Gerard Sturt |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| Henry Ker Seymer |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| William Henry Berkeley Portman |
Liberal |
Unopposed |
Yes |
1865 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| Henry Gerard Sturt |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| John Floyer |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| William Henry Berkeley Portman |
Liberal |
Unopposed |
Yes |
1868 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| Henry Gerard Sturt |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| John Floyer |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| William Henry Berkeley Portman |
Liberal |
Unopposed |
Yes |
1874 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| Henry Gerard Sturt |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| John Floyer |
Conservative |
Unopposed |
Yes |
| William Henry Berkeley Portman |
Liberal |
Unopposed |
Yes |
1880 (3 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|
| Edward Henry Trafalgar Digby |
Conservative |
0 | 0.0% |
Yes |
| John Floyer |
Conservative |
0 | 0.0% |
Yes |
| William Henry Berkeley Portman |
Liberal |
0 | 0.0% |
Yes |
Margin Over Time
Winning margin (percentage points) at each election, coloured by the winning party.
Not enough contested elections of data yet to chart a trend.
Trend
Dorset has been contested at 12 general elections on record since 1832. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Conservative, Whig, Liberal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won Dorset in the 1880 general election?
Edward Henry Trafalgar Digby (Conservative), John Floyer (Conservative), William Henry Berkeley Portman (Liberal) won Dorset in 1880.
Which parties have won Dorset since 1832?
Since 1832, Dorset has been won by: Conservative, Liberal, Whig.
What was the closest result in Dorset?
The closest result on record for Dorset was 1857, when Whig beat Conservative by just 18 votes (0.2 percentage points).
Did Dorset ever elect more than one MP at a time?
Yes -- like most UK constituencies before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, Dorset elected multiple MPs at once in some elections on this page (a system called multi-member plurality, or 'block vote'), each voter casting one vote per available seat.
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