Dundee — UK General Election Results
Dundee was won by Labour at the 1945 general election, with a majority of 411 votes over Labour. This page covers every general election in Dundee from 1832 to 1945.
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, 1832–1945
| Election | Elected | Votes | Vote Share | Runner-up | Majority | Turnout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1832 | George Kinloch (Whig) | 852 | 59.0% | David Charles Guthrie (Whig) | 259 (17.9 pts) | 89.1% |
| 1835 | Henry Brooke Parnell (Whig) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1837 | Henry Brooke Parnell (Whig) | 633 | 62.4% | John Gladstone (Conservative) | 252 (24.9 pts) | 45.8% |
| 1841 | George Duncan (Whig) | 577 | 56.5% | John Benjamin Smith (Radical) | 132 (12.9 pts) | 37.3% |
| 1847 | George Duncan (Whig) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1852 | George Duncan (Whig) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1857 | John Ogilvy (Whig) | 1,092 | 56.3% | George Armitstead (Radical) | 245 (12.6 pts) | 82.8% |
| 1859 | John Ogilvy (Liberal) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1865 | John Ogilvy (Liberal) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1868 | George Armitstead (Liberal); John Ogilvy (Liberal) | 7,661 | 36.8% (top seat) | James Alexander Guthrie (Liberal) | 4,113 (19.6 pts) | 71.1% |
| 1874 | James Yeaman (Liberal); John Edward Jenkins (Liberal) | 6,048 | 33.2% (top seat) | John Ogilvy (Liberal) | 1,647 (8.3 pts) | 55.7% |
| 1880 | George Armitstead (Liberal); Frank Henderson (Liberal) | 6,750 | 43.8% (top seat) | James Yeaman (Conservative) | 1,757 (8.4 pts) | 71.8% |
| 1885 | Charles Carmichael Lacaita (Liberal); Edmund Robertson (Liberal) | 7,187 | 30.7% (top seat) | Alexander Hay Moncur (Independent Liberal) | 908 (3.4 pts) | 83.9% |
| 1886 | Edmund Robertson (Liberal); Charles Carmichael Lacaita (Liberal) | 8,216 | 35.3% (top seat) | Brinsley de Courcy Nixon (Liberal Unionist) | 4,671 (20.0 pts) | 68.3% |
| 1892 | John Leng (Liberal); Edmund Robertson (Liberal) | 8,191 | 30.6% (top seat) | William Ogilvy Dalgleish (Conservative) | 2,532 (9.1 pts) | 77.0% |
| 1895 | Edmund Robertson (Liberal); John Leng (Liberal) | 7,592 | 29.0% (top seat) | William Charles Smith (Liberal Unionist) | 2,202 (8.4 pts) | 74.9% |
| 1900 | Edmund Robertson (Liberal); John Leng (Liberal) | 7,650 | 30.2% (top seat) | Alexander Duncan Smith (Conservative) | 2,469 (9.6 pts) | 69.5% |
| 1906 | Edmund Robertson (Liberal); Alexander Wilkie (Labour) | 6,833 | 31.7% (top seat) | Henry Robson (Liberal) | 711 (2.4 pts) | 81.9% |
| Jan 1910 | Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (Liberal); Alexander Wilkie (Labour) | 10,365 | 34.1% (top seat) | John Hall Seymour Lloyd (Conservative) | 5,813 (18.4 pts) | 86.1% |
| Dec 1910 | Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (Liberal); Alexander Wilkie (Labour) | 8,957 | 30.2% (top seat) | George Baxter (Liberal Unionist) | 3,272 (10.7 pts) | 84.1% |
| 1918 | Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (Liberal) | 25,788 | 37.5% | Alexander Wilkie (Labour) | 966 (1.4 pts) | 41.1% |
| 1922 | Edwin Scrymgeour (Scottish Prohibition) | 32,578 | 27.6% | Edmund Dene Morel (Labour) | 2,286 (1.9 pts) | 75.7% |
| 1923 | Edwin Scrymgeour (Scottish Prohibition) | 25,753 | 25.1% | Edmund Dene Morel (Labour) | 2,408 (2.3 pts) | 65.4% |
| 1924 | Edmund Dene Morel (Labour) | 32,846 | 26.5% | Edwin Scrymgeour (Scottish Prohibition) | 3,653 (2.9 pts) | 79.2% |
| 1929 | Edwin Scrymgeour (Scottish Prohibition) | 50,073 | 29.2% | Michael Marcus (Labour) | 2,471 (1.4 pts) | 78.6% |
| 1931 | Dingle Mackintosh Foot (Liberal) | 52,048 | 29.6% | Florence Horsbrugh (Unionist) | 3,492 (2.0 pts) | 80.4% |
| 1935 | Florence Gertrude Horsbrugh (Unionist) | 50,542 | 26.8% | Dingle Mackintosh Foot (Liberal) | 910 (0.5 pts) | 83.8% |
| 1945 | Thomas Fotheringham Cook (Labour) | 48,804 | 28.6% | Evelyn John St Loe Strachey (Labour) | 411 (0.2 pts) | 77.1% |
Full Result Breakdown by Election
1832
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Kinloch | Whig | 852 | 59.0% | Yes |
| David Charles Guthrie | Whig | 593 | 41.0% | No |
1835
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Henry Brooke Parnell | Whig | Unopposed | Yes | |
1837
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Henry Brooke Parnell | Whig | 633 | 62.4% | Yes |
| John Gladstone | Conservative | 381 | 37.6% | No |
1841
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Duncan | Whig | 577 | 56.5% | Yes |
| John Benjamin Smith | Radical | 445 | 43.5% | No |
1847
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Duncan | Whig | Unopposed | Yes | |
1852
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Duncan | Whig | Unopposed | Yes | |
1857
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Ogilvy | Whig | 1,092 | 56.3% | Yes |
| George Armitstead | Radical | 847 | 43.7% | No |
1859
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Ogilvy | Liberal | Unopposed | Yes | |
1865
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Ogilvy | Liberal | Unopposed | Yes | |
1868 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Armitstead | Liberal | 7,738 | 36.8% | Yes |
| John Ogilvy | Liberal | 7,661 | 36.4% | Yes |
| James Alexander Guthrie | Liberal | 3,548 | 16.9% | No |
| Harry Warren Scott | Liberal | 2,085 | 9.9% | No |
1874 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Yeaman | Liberal | 6,595 | 33.2% | Yes |
| John Edward Jenkins | Liberal | 6,048 | 30.5% | Yes |
| John Ogilvy | Liberal | 4,401 | 22.2% | No |
| John Miller Dow Meiklejohn | Liberal | 2,231 | 11.2% | No |
| John Austin Lake Gloag | Conservative | 573 | 2.9% | No |
1880 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Armitstead | Liberal | 9,168 | 43.8% | Yes |
| Frank Henderson | Liberal | 6,750 | 32.3% | Yes |
| James Yeaman | Conservative | 4,993 | 23.9% | No |
1885 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charles Carmichael Lacaita | Liberal | 8,261 | 30.7% | Yes |
| Edmund Robertson | Liberal | 7,187 | 26.7% | Yes |
| Alexander Hay Moncur | Independent Liberal | 6,279 | 23.4% | No |
| John Edward Jenkins | Conservative | 5,149 | 19.2% | No |
1886 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edmund Robertson | Liberal | 8,236 | 35.3% | Yes |
| Charles Carmichael Lacaita | Liberal | 8,216 | 35.2% | Yes |
| Brinsley de Courcy Nixon | Liberal Unionist | 3,545 | 15.2% | No |
| Henry Dermot Daly | Liberal Unionist | 3,346 | 14.3% | No |
1892 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Leng | Liberal | 8,484 | 30.6% | Yes |
| Edmund Robertson | Liberal | 8,191 | 29.5% | Yes |
| William Ogilvy Dalgleish | Conservative | 5,659 | 20.4% | No |
| William Charles Smith | Liberal Unionist | 5,066 | 18.3% | No |
| James MacDonald | Scottish Labour | 354 | 1.3% | No |
1895 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edmund Robertson | Liberal | 7,602 | 29.0% | Yes |
| John Leng | Liberal | 7,592 | 29.0% | Yes |
| William Charles Smith | Liberal Unionist | 5,390 | 20.6% | No |
| John Edward Jenkins | Conservative | 4,318 | 16.5% | No |
| James MacDonald | Independent Labour | 1,313 | 5.0% | No |
1900 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edmund Robertson | Liberal | 7,777 | 30.2% | Yes |
| John Leng | Liberal | 7,650 | 29.7% | Yes |
| Alexander Duncan Smith | Conservative | 5,181 | 20.1% | No |
| James Edward Graham | Liberal Unionist | 5,152 | 20.0% | No |
1906 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edmund Robertson | Liberal | 9,276 | 31.7% | Yes |
| Alexander Wilkie | Labour | 6,833 | 23.3% | Yes |
| Henry Robson | Liberal | 6,122 | 20.9% | No |
| Ernest Henry Shackleton | Liberal Unionist | 3,865 | 13.2% | No |
| Alexander Duncan Smith | Conservative | 3,183 | 10.9% | No |
Jan 1910 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill | Liberal | 10,747 | 34.1% | Yes |
| Alexander Wilkie | Labour | 10,365 | 32.9% | Yes |
| John Hall Seymour Lloyd | Conservative | 4,552 | 14.4% | No |
| James Glass | Liberal Unionist | 4,339 | 13.8% | No |
| Edwin Scrymgeour | Scottish Prohibition | 1,512 | 4.8% | No |
Dec 1910 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill | Liberal | 9,240 | 30.2% | Yes |
| Alexander Wilkie | Labour | 8,957 | 29.3% | Yes |
| George Baxter | Liberal Unionist | 5,685 | 18.6% | No |
| John Hall Seymour Lloyd | Conservative | 4,914 | 16.0% | No |
| Edwin Scrymgeour | Scottish Prohibition | 1,825 | 6.0% | No |
1918
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill | Liberal | 25,788 | 37.5% | Yes |
| Alexander Wilkie | Labour | 24,822 | 36.1% | No |
| Edwin Scrymgeour | Scottish Prohibition | 10,423 | 15.1% | No |
| James Sunney Brown | Labour | 7,769 | 11.3% | No |
1922
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edwin Scrymgeour | Scottish Prohibition | 32,578 | 27.6% | Yes |
| Edmund Dene Morel | Labour | 30,292 | 25.6% | No |
| David Johnston MacDonald | National Liberal | 22,244 | 18.8% | No |
| Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill | National Liberal | 20,466 | 17.3% | No |
| Robert Rivington Pilkington | Liberal | 6,681 | 5.7% | No |
| William Gallacher | Communist | 5,906 | 5.0% | No |
1923
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edwin Scrymgeour | Scottish Prohibition | 25,753 | 25.1% | Yes |
| Edmund Dene Morel | Labour | 23,345 | 22.7% | No |
| John William Pratt | Liberal | 23,031 | 22.4% | No |
| Frederick William Wallace | Unionist | 20,253 | 19.7% | No |
| William Gallacher | Communist | 10,380 | 10.1% | No |
1924
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edmund Dene Morel | Labour | 32,846 | 26.5% | Yes |
| Edwin Scrymgeour | Scottish Prohibition | 29,193 | 23.5% | No |
| Frederick William Wallace | Unionist | 28,118 | 22.7% | No |
| Andrew Rae Duncan | Liberal | 25,566 | 20.6% | No |
| Robert Stewart | Communist | 8,340 | 6.7% | No |
1929
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edwin Scrymgeour | Scottish Prohibition | 50,073 | 29.2% | Yes |
| Michael Marcus | Labour | 47,602 | 27.7% | No |
| James Henderson-Stewart | Liberal | 33,890 | 19.8% | No |
| Frederick William Wallace | Unionist | 33,868 | 19.7% | No |
| Robert Stewart | Communist | 6,160 | 3.6% | No |
1931
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dingle Mackintosh Foot | Liberal | 52,048 | 29.6% | Yes |
| Florence Horsbrugh | Unionist | 48,556 | 27.6% | No |
| Michael Marcus | Labour | 32,573 | 18.5% | No |
| Edwin Scrymgeour | Scottish Prohibition | 32,229 | 18.3% | No |
| Robert Stewart | Communist | 10,264 | 5.8% | No |
1935
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florence Gertrude Horsbrugh | Unionist | 50,542 | 26.8% | Yes |
| Dingle Mackintosh Foot | Liberal | 49,632 | 26.3% | No |
| Michael Marcus | Labour | 44,457 | 23.6% | No |
| Robert Gibson | Labour | 43,747 | 23.2% | No |
1945
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas Fotheringham Cook | Labour | 48,804 | 28.6% | Yes |
| Evelyn John St Loe Strachey | Labour | 48,393 | 28.4% | No |
| Dingle Mackintosh Foot | Liberal | 33,230 | 19.5% | No |
| Florence Gertrude Horsbrugh | Unionist | 32,309 | 18.9% | No |
| Arthur William Donaldson | SNP | 7,775 | 4.6% | No |
Margin Over Time
Winning margin (percentage points) at each election, coloured by the winning party.
Trend
Dundee has been contested at 28 general elections on record since 1832. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Whig, Liberal, Labour, Scottish Prohibition, Unionist.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won Dundee in the 1945 general election?
Labour won Dundee in 1945 with 48,804 votes (28.6%), a majority of 411 votes over Labour in second place.
Which parties have won Dundee since 1832?
Since 1832, Dundee has been won by: Labour, Liberal, Scottish Prohibition, Unionist, Whig.
What was the closest result in Dundee?
The closest result on record for Dundee was 1945, when Labour beat Labour by just 411 votes (0.2 percentage points).
Did Dundee ever elect more than one MP at a time?
Yes -- like most UK constituencies before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, Dundee 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.