Compiled by EveryElectionResult.com's data team · Last updated 2026-08-30
Kildare elected 2 MPs at the 1880 general election: Charles Henry Meldon (Irish Parliamentary Party) and James Leahy (Irish Parliamentary Party). This page covers every general election in Kildare 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
Edward Ruthven (Repeal Association); Richard More O'Ferrall (Liberal)
216
48.3% (top seat)
Josiah William Hort (Liberal)
152 (28.0 pts)
24.4%
1835
Richard More O'Ferrall (Liberal); Edward Ruthven (Repeal Association and Whig)
389
38.2% (top seat)
Frederick Ponsonby (Liberal)
56 (4.8 pts)
50.7%
1837
Richard More O'Ferrall (Liberal); Robert Archbold (Liberal)
728
44.3% (top seat)
Robert Burke (Conservative)
502 (29.2 pts)
61.1%
1841
Richard More O'Ferrall (Liberal); Robert Archbold (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1847
Charles William FitzGerald (Liberal); Richard Southwell Bourke (Conservative)
413
43.2% (top seat)
John Augustus O'Neill (Repeal Association)
112 (8.9 pts)
22.6%
1852
William Henry Ford Cogan (Independent Irish); David O'Connor-Henchy (Independent Irish)
1,392
41.6% (top seat)
Charles Edward Bayly Kennedy (Conservative)
776 (22.6 pts)
62.0%
1857
William Henry Ford Cogan (Radical); David O'Connor-Henchy (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1859
William Henry Ford Cogan (Liberal); Richard More O'Ferrall (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1865
William Henry Ford Cogan (Liberal); Otho Augustus FitzGerald (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1868
William Henry Ford Cogan (Liberal); Otho Augustus FitzGerald (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1874
Charles Henry Meldon (Irish Parliamentary Party); William Henry Ford Cogan (Liberal)
964
40.3% (top seat)
Otho Augustus FitzGerald (Liberal)
237 (7.4 pts)
54.8%
1880
Charles Henry Meldon (Irish Parliamentary Party); James Leahy (Irish Parliamentary Party)
1,004
38.6% (top seat)
Richard More O'Ferrall (Liberal)
320 (9.9 pts)
57.8%
Full Result Breakdown by Election
1832 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Edward Ruthven
Repeal Association
262
48.3%
Yes
Richard More O'Ferrall
Liberal
216
39.9%
Yes
Josiah William Hort
Liberal
64
11.8%
No
1835 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Richard More O'Ferrall
Liberal
446
38.2%
Yes
Edward Ruthven
Repeal Association and Whig
389
33.3%
Yes
Frederick Ponsonby
Liberal
333
28.5%
No
1837 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Richard More O'Ferrall
Liberal
762
44.3%
Yes
Robert Archbold
Liberal
728
42.3%
Yes
Robert Burke
Conservative
226
13.1%
No
Edward Ruthven
Repeal Association and Whig
2
0.1%
No
Anthony George Lefroy
Conservative
2
0.1%
No
1841 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Richard More O'Ferrall
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
Robert Archbold
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1847 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Charles William FitzGerald
Liberal
544
43.2%
Yes
Richard Southwell Bourke
Conservative
413
32.8%
Yes
John Augustus O'Neill
Repeal Association
301
23.9%
No
1852 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
William Henry Ford Cogan
Independent Irish
1,431
41.6%
Yes
David O'Connor-Henchy
Independent Irish
1,392
40.5%
Yes
Charles Edward Bayly Kennedy
Conservative
616
17.9%
No
1857 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
William Henry Ford Cogan
Radical
Unopposed
Yes
David O'Connor-Henchy
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1859 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
William Henry Ford Cogan
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
Richard More O'Ferrall
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1865 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
William Henry Ford Cogan
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
Otho Augustus FitzGerald
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1868 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
William Henry Ford Cogan
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
Otho Augustus FitzGerald
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1874 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Charles Henry Meldon
Irish Parliamentary Party
1,296
40.3%
Yes
William Henry Ford Cogan
Liberal
964
30.0%
Yes
Otho Augustus FitzGerald
Liberal
727
22.6%
No
Hill Falconer Morgan
Irish Parliamentary Party
226
7.0%
No
1880 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Charles Henry Meldon
Irish Parliamentary Party
1,245
38.6%
Yes
James Leahy
Irish Parliamentary Party
1,004
31.1%
Yes
Richard More O'Ferrall
Liberal
684
21.2%
No
Alfred Harris
Irish Parliamentary Party
295
9.1%
No
Margin Over Time
Winning margin (percentage points) at each election, coloured by the winning party.
Trend
Kildare has been contested at 12 general elections on record since 1832. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Repeal Association, Liberal, Repeal Association and Whig, Conservative, Independent Irish, Radical, Irish Parliamentary Party.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won Kildare in the 1880 general election?
Charles Henry Meldon (Irish Parliamentary Party), James Leahy (Irish Parliamentary Party) won Kildare in 1880.
Which parties have won Kildare since 1832?
Since 1832, Kildare has been won by: Conservative, Independent Irish, Irish Parliamentary Party, Liberal, Radical, Repeal Association, Repeal Association and Whig.
What was the closest result in Kildare?
The closest result on record for Kildare was 1835, when Liberal beat Liberal by just 56 votes (4.8 percentage points).
Did Kildare ever elect more than one MP at a time?
Yes -- like most UK constituencies before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, Kildare 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.