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Leeds South East — UK General Election Results

Compiled by EveryElectionResult.com's data team · Last updated 2026-08-30

Leeds South East was won by Labour at the 1979 general election, with a majority of 9,372 votes over Conservative. This page covers every general election in Leeds South East from 1918 to 1979.

Full Election History, 1918–1979

Election Elected Votes Vote Share Runner-up Majority Turnout
1918 James O'Grady (Labour) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1922 James O'Grady (Labour) 13,676 58.9% Mary Pollock Grant (Liberal) 4,122 (17.7 pts) 66.2%
1923 James O'Grady (Labour) 12,210 63.2% William Whiteley (Liberal) 5,100 (26.4 pts) 54.1%
1924 Henry Herman Slesser (Labour) 15,133 58.6% William Whiteley (Liberal) 4,429 (17.1 pts) 71.8%
1929 Henry Herman Slesser (Labour) 22,403 75.2% John Spurr (Unionist) 15,018 (50.4 pts) 62.6%
1931 James Milner (Labour) 17,845 52.6% Philip Le Mesurier (Conservative) 1,736 (5.1 pts) 69.7%
1935 James Milner (Labour) 19,552 65.7% Philip Le Mesurier (Conservative) 9,360 (31.5 pts) 62.5%
1945 James Milner (Labour) 20,363 71.8% Sydney Beevers (Conservative) 15,845 (55.9 pts) 71.5%
1950 James Milner (Labour) 23,994 57.8% Charles Edward Kirwin (Conservative) 8,732 (21.1 pts) 85.3%
1951 James Milner (Labour) 24,929 60.5% Charles Edward Kirwin (Conservative) 8,652 (21.0 pts) 84.4%
1955 Alice Martha Bacon (Labour) 25,714 66.2% Wilson Dunn (Conservative) 12,572 (32.4 pts) 67.9%
1959 Alice Martha Bacon (Labour) 21,795 64.2% J Brian Womersley (Conservative) 9,649 (28.4 pts) 70.0%
1964 Alice Martha Bacon (Labour) 16,672 67.7% John E MacDonald (Conservative) 8,708 (35.4 pts) 64.3%
1966 Alice Bacon (Labour) 14,663 71.9% Janet Gillespie Todd (Conservative) 8,920 (43.7 pts) 61.4%
1970 Stanley Cohen (Labour) 10,930 62.7% May Sexton (Conservative) 5,748 (33.0 pts) 58.4%
Feb 1974 Stanley Cohen (Labour) 17,827 53.1% May Sexton (Conservative) 9,454 (28.1 pts) 67.8%
Oct 1974 Stanley Cohen (Labour) 17,160 61.2% May Sexton (Conservative) 11,016 (39.3 pts) 56.4%
1979 Stanley Cohen (Labour) 15,921 56.3% May Sexton (Conservative) 9,372 (33.2 pts) 65.0%

Full Result Breakdown by Election

1918

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
James O'Grady Labour Unopposed Yes

1922

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
James O'Grady Labour 13,67658.9% Yes
Mary Pollock Grant Liberal 9,55441.1% No

1923

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
James O'Grady Labour 12,21063.2% Yes
William Whiteley Liberal 7,11036.8% No

1924

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Henry Herman Slesser Labour 15,13358.6% Yes
William Whiteley Liberal 10,70441.4% No

1929

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Henry Herman Slesser Labour 22,40375.2% Yes
John Spurr Unionist 7,38524.8% No

1931

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
James Milner Labour 17,84552.6% Yes
Philip Le Mesurier Conservative 16,10947.4% No

1935

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
James Milner Labour 19,55265.7% Yes
Philip Le Mesurier Conservative 10,19234.3% No

1945

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
James Milner Labour 20,36371.8% Yes
Sydney Beevers Conservative 4,51815.9% No
Clifford Henry Tyers Liberal 3,46612.2% No

1950

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
James Milner Labour 23,99457.8% Yes
Charles Edward Kirwin Conservative 15,26236.8% No
Albert Hope Liberal 2,2345.4% No

1951

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
James Milner Labour 24,92960.5% Yes
Charles Edward Kirwin Conservative 16,27739.5% No

1955

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Alice Martha Bacon Labour 25,71466.2% Yes
Wilson Dunn Conservative 13,14233.8% No

1959

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Alice Martha Bacon Labour 21,79564.2% Yes
J Brian Womersley Conservative 12,14635.8% No

1964

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Alice Martha Bacon Labour 16,67267.7% Yes
John E MacDonald Conservative 7,96432.3% No

1966

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Alice Bacon Labour 14,66371.9% Yes
Janet Gillespie Todd Conservative 5,74328.1% No

1970

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Stanley Cohen Labour 10,93062.7% Yes
May Sexton Conservative 5,18229.7% No
Edwin Anthony Britten Liberal 1,1356.5% No
Bernard Scott Communist 1991.1% No

Feb 1974

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Stanley Cohen Labour 17,82753.1% Yes
May Sexton Conservative 8,37324.9% No
Margaret Clay Liberal 6,98120.8% No
William Henry Innes Communist 4051.2% No

Oct 1974

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Stanley Cohen Labour 17,16061.2% Yes
May Sexton Conservative 6,14421.9% No
Margaret Clay Liberal 4,42915.8% No
William Henry Innes Communist 3171.1% No

1979

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Stanley Cohen Labour 15,92156.3% Yes
May Sexton Conservative 6,54923.2% No
Margaret Clay Liberal 5,43019.2% No
James Martin Rodgers Communist 1900.7% No
Patrick Flint National Front 1680.6% No

Margin Over Time

Winning margin (percentage points) at each election, coloured by the winning party.

1922: Labour margin 17.7 pts 1923: Labour margin 26.4 pts 1924: Labour margin 17.1 pts 1929: Labour margin 50.4 pts 1931: Labour margin 5.1 pts 1935: Labour margin 31.5 pts 1945: Labour margin 55.9 pts 1950: Labour margin 21.1 pts 1951: Labour margin 21.0 pts 1955: Labour margin 32.4 pts 1959: Labour margin 28.4 pts 1964: Labour margin 35.4 pts 1966: Labour margin 43.7 pts 1970: Labour margin 33.0 pts Feb 1974: Labour margin 28.1 pts Oct 1974: Labour margin 39.3 pts 1979: Labour margin 33.2 pts 1922 1923 1924 1929 1931 1935 1945 1950 1951 1955 1959 1964 1966 1970 Feb 1974 Oct 1974 1979

Trend

Leeds South East has been contested at 18 general elections on record since 1918. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Labour.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who won Leeds South East in the 1979 general election?

Labour won Leeds South East in 1979 with 15,921 votes (56.3%), a majority of 9,372 votes over Conservative in second place.

Which parties have won Leeds South East since 1918?

Since 1918, Leeds South East has been won by: Labour.

What was the closest result in Leeds South East?

The closest result on record for Leeds South East was 1931, when Labour beat Conservative by just 1,736 votes (5.1 percentage points).

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