Compiled by EveryElectionResult.com's data team · Last updated 2026-08-30
East Cornwall elected 2 MPs at the 1880 general election: Thomas Charles Agar-Robartes (Liberal) and William Copeland Borlase (Liberal). This page covers every general election in East Cornwall 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
William Molesworth (Radical); William Lewis Salusbury-Trelawny (Whig)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1835
William Molesworth (Radical); William Lewis Salusbury-Trelawny (Whig)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1837
Edward Granville Eliot (Conservative); Richard Hussey Vivian (Whig)
2,294
34.8% (top seat)
William Lewis Salusbury-Trelawny (Whig)
44 (0.6 pts)
63.8%
1841
Edward Granville Eliot (Conservative); William Rashleigh (Conservative)
2,807
40.3% (top seat)
John Salusbury Trelawny (Radical)
1,160 (15.6 pts)
61.4%
1847
William Henry Pole-Carew (Conservative); Thomas James Agar-Robartes (Whig)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1852
Thomas James Agar-Robartes (Whig); Nicholas Kendall (Conservative)
1,996
39.6% (top seat)
William Henry Pole-Carew (Conservative)
17 (0.3 pts)
57.8%
1857
Thomas James Agar-Robartes (Whig); Nicholas Kendall (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1859
Thomas James Agar-Robartes (Liberal); Nicholas Kendall (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1865
Nicholas Kendall (Conservative); Thomas James Agar-Robartes (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1868
John Salusbury Salusbury-Trelawny (Liberal); Edward William Brydges Willyams (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1874
Colman Rashleigh (Liberal); John Tremayne (Conservative)
3,276
26.6% (top seat)
William Henry Pole-Carew (Conservative)
177 (1.4 pts)
71.0%
1880
Thomas Charles Agar-Robartes (Liberal); William Copeland Borlase (Liberal)
3,883
30.1% (top seat)
John Tremayne (Conservative)
850 (6.4 pts)
72.9%
Full Result Breakdown by Election
1832 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
William Molesworth
Radical
Unopposed
Yes
William Lewis Salusbury-Trelawny
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
1835 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
William Molesworth
Radical
Unopposed
Yes
William Lewis Salusbury-Trelawny
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
1837 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Edward Granville Eliot
Conservative
2,430
34.8%
Yes
Richard Hussey Vivian
Whig
2,294
32.9%
Yes
William Lewis Salusbury-Trelawny
Whig
2,250
32.3%
No
1841 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Edward Granville Eliot
Conservative
3,006
40.3%
Yes
William Rashleigh
Conservative
2,807
37.6%
Yes
John Salusbury Trelawny
Radical
1,647
22.1%
No
1847 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
William Henry Pole-Carew
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Thomas James Agar-Robartes
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
1852 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Thomas James Agar-Robartes
Whig
2,609
39.6%
Yes
Nicholas Kendall
Conservative
1,996
30.3%
Yes
William Henry Pole-Carew
Conservative
1,979
30.1%
No
1857 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Thomas James Agar-Robartes
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
Nicholas Kendall
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1859 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Thomas James Agar-Robartes
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
Nicholas Kendall
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1865 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Nicholas Kendall
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Thomas James Agar-Robartes
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1868 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Salusbury Salusbury-Trelawny
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
Edward William Brydges Willyams
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1874 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Colman Rashleigh
Liberal
3,395
26.6%
Yes
John Tremayne
Conservative
3,276
25.7%
Yes
William Henry Pole-Carew
Conservative
3,099
24.3%
No
Reginald Kelly
Liberal
2,978
23.4%
No
1880 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Thomas Charles Agar-Robartes
Liberal
4,018
30.1%
Yes
William Copeland Borlase
Liberal
3,883
29.1%
Yes
John Tremayne
Conservative
3,033
22.7%
No
Digby Collins
Conservative
2,403
18.0%
No
Margin Over Time
Winning margin (percentage points) at each election, coloured by the winning party.
Trend
East Cornwall has been contested at 12 general elections on record since 1832. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Radical, Whig, Conservative, Liberal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won East Cornwall in the 1880 general election?
Thomas Charles Agar-Robartes (Liberal), William Copeland Borlase (Liberal) won East Cornwall in 1880.
Which parties have won East Cornwall since 1832?
Since 1832, East Cornwall has been won by: Conservative, Liberal, Radical, Whig.
What was the closest result in East Cornwall?
The closest result on record for East Cornwall was 1852, when Whig beat Conservative by just 17 votes (0.3 percentage points).
Did East Cornwall ever elect more than one MP at a time?
Yes -- like most UK constituencies before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, East Cornwall 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.