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Londonderry — UK General Election Results

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

Londonderry was won by Ulster Unionist at the 1979 general election, with a majority of 12,407 votes over SDLP. This page covers every general election in Londonderry from 1832 to 1979.

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, 1832–1979

Election Elected Votes Vote Share Runner-up Majority Turnout
1832 Robert Bateson (Conservative); Theobald Jones (Conservative) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1835 Robert Bateson (Conservative); Theobald Jones (Conservative) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1837 Robert Bateson (Conservative); Theobald Jones (Conservative) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1841 Robert Bateson (Conservative); Theobald Jones (Conservative) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1847 Thomas Bateson (Conservative); Theobald Jones (Conservative) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1852 Thomas Bateson (Conservative); Theobald Jones (Conservative) 1,909 38.0% (top seat) Samuel MacCurdy Greer (Liberal) 391 (7.1 pts) 64.2%
1857 James Johnston Clark (Conservative); Samuel MacCurdy Greer (Liberal) 2,339 37.5% (top seat) Henry Hervey Bruce (Conservative) 663 (10.3 pts) 63.2%
1859 Robert Peel Dawson (Conservative); Frederick William Heygate (Conservative) 2,468 38.2% (top seat) Samuel MacCurdy Greer (Liberal) 678 (9.8 pts) 66.5%
1865 Robert Peel Dawson (Conservative); Frederick William Heygate (Conservative) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1868 Robert Peel Dawson (Conservative); Frederick William Heygate (Conservative) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1874 Richard Smyth (Liberal); Hugh Law (Liberal) 2,701 33.8% (top seat) Robert Jackson Alexander (Conservative) 954 (10.8 pts) 82.4%
1880 Hugh Law (Liberal); Thomas McClure (Liberal) 2,912 37.5% (top seat) Samuel Maxwell Alexander (Conservative) 805 (10.0 pts) 68.6%
1922 Malcolm Martin Macnaghten (Ulster Unionist) 30,743 75.7% Edmund Loftus MacNaghten (Protestant Home-Ruler and Anti-Partionist) 20,882 (51.4 pts) 63.9%
1923 Malcolm Martin Macnaghten (Ulster Unionist) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1924 Malcolm Martin Macnaghten (Ulster Unionist) 30,875 82.9% Charles MacWhinney (Sinn Féin) 25,006 (67.1 pts) 59.1%
1929 Ronald Deane Ross (Ulster Unionist) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1931 Ronald Deane Ross (Ulster Unionist) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1935 Ronald Deane Ross (Ulster Unionist) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1945 Ronald Deane Ross (Ulster Unionist) 40,214 50.7% Denis Cavanagh (Irish Nationalist) 2,653 (3.4 pts) 88.1%
1950 Ronald Deane Ross (Ulster Unionist) 36,602 62.6% Hugh McAteer (Independent Republican) 14,722 (25.2 pts) 80.6%
1951 William Wellwood (Ulster Unionist) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1955 Robin Chichester-Clark (Ulster Unionist) 35,673 64.5% Manus Canning (Sinn Féin) 16,033 (29.0 pts) 77.6%
1959 Robin Chichester-Clark (Ulster Unionist) 37,529 73.0% Manus Canning (Sinn Féin) 23,657 (46.0 pts) 70.2%
1964 Robert Chichester-Clark (Ulster Unionist) 37,700 64.1% Hugh McAteer (Independent Republican) 16,577 (28.2 pts) 76.5%
1966 Robin Chichester-Clark (Ulster Unionist) 34,729 58.1% Paddy Gormley (Nationalist (NI)) 12,562 (21.0 pts) 76.4%
1970 Robin Chichester-Clark (Ulster Unionist) 39,141 53.1% Eddie McAteer (Unity) 12,135 (16.5 pts) 81.6%
Feb 1974 William Ross (Ulster Unionist) 33,060 52.7% Hugh Logue (SDLP) 9,390 (15.0 pts) 68.1%
Oct 1974 William Ross (Ulster Unionist) 35,138 54.4% John Hume (SDLP) 9,020 (14.0 pts) 69.4%
1979 William Ross (Ulster Unionist) 31,592 49.7% Hugh Logue (SDLP) 12,407 (19.5 pts) 67.1%

Full Result Breakdown by Election

1832 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robert Bateson Conservative Unopposed Yes
Theobald Jones Conservative Unopposed Yes

1835 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robert Bateson Conservative Unopposed Yes
Theobald Jones Conservative Unopposed Yes

1837 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robert Bateson Conservative Unopposed Yes
Theobald Jones Conservative Unopposed Yes

1841 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robert Bateson Conservative Unopposed Yes
Theobald Jones Conservative Unopposed Yes

1847 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Thomas Bateson Conservative Unopposed Yes
Theobald Jones Conservative Unopposed Yes

1852 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Thomas Bateson Conservative 2,09838.0% Yes
Theobald Jones Conservative 1,90934.6% Yes
Samuel MacCurdy Greer Liberal 1,51827.5% No

1857 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
James Johnston Clark Conservative 2,40437.5% Yes
Samuel MacCurdy Greer Liberal 2,33936.4% Yes
Henry Hervey Bruce Conservative 1,67626.1% No

1859 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robert Peel Dawson Conservative 2,62838.2% Yes
Frederick William Heygate Conservative 2,46835.8% Yes
Samuel MacCurdy Greer Liberal 1,79026.0% No

1865 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robert Peel Dawson Conservative Unopposed Yes
Frederick William Heygate Conservative Unopposed Yes

1868 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robert Peel Dawson Conservative Unopposed Yes
Frederick William Heygate Conservative Unopposed Yes

1874 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Richard Smyth Liberal 2,98833.8% Yes
Hugh Law Liberal 2,70130.6% Yes
Robert Jackson Alexander Conservative 1,74719.8% No
John Barré Beresford Conservative 1,40215.9% No

1880 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Hugh Law Liberal 3,01237.5% Yes
Thomas McClure Liberal 2,91236.3% Yes
Samuel Maxwell Alexander Conservative 2,10726.2% No

1922

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Malcolm Martin Macnaghten Ulster Unionist 30,74375.7% Yes
Edmund Loftus MacNaghten Protestant Home-Ruler and Anti-Partionist 9,86124.3% No

1923

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Malcolm Martin Macnaghten Ulster Unionist Unopposed Yes

1924

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Malcolm Martin Macnaghten Ulster Unionist 30,87582.9% Yes
Charles MacWhinney Sinn Féin 5,86915.8% No
William Galt Independent Unionist 5171.4% No

1929

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Ronald Deane Ross Ulster Unionist Unopposed Yes

1931

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Ronald Deane Ross Ulster Unionist Unopposed Yes

1935

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Ronald Deane Ross Ulster Unionist Unopposed Yes

1945

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Ronald Deane Ross Ulster Unionist 40,21450.7% Yes
Denis Cavanagh Irish Nationalist 37,56147.4% No
Milton Gordon NI Labour 1,4711.9% No

1950

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Ronald Deane Ross Ulster Unionist 36,60262.6% Yes
Hugh McAteer Independent Republican 21,88037.4% No

1951

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
William Wellwood Ulster Unionist Unopposed Yes

1955

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robin Chichester-Clark Ulster Unionist 35,67364.5% Yes
Manus Canning Sinn Féin 19,64035.5% No

1959

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robin Chichester-Clark Ulster Unionist 37,52973.0% Yes
Manus Canning Sinn Féin 13,87227.0% No

1964

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robert Chichester-Clark Ulster Unionist 37,70064.1% Yes
Hugh McAteer Independent Republican 21,12335.9% No

1966

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robin Chichester-Clark Ulster Unionist 34,72958.1% Yes
Paddy Gormley Nationalist (NI) 22,16737.1% No
Neil Gillespie Independent Republican 2,8604.8% No

1970

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robin Chichester-Clark Ulster Unionist 39,14153.1% Yes
Eddie McAteer Unity 27,00636.6% No
Eamonn McCann Derry Labour 7,56510.3% No

Feb 1974

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
William Ross Ulster Unionist 33,06052.7% Yes
Hugh Logue SDLP 23,67037.7% No
Michael Montgomery Republican Clubs 4,8897.8% No
Richard Foster Independent 1,1621.9% No

Oct 1974

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
William Ross Ulster Unionist 35,13854.4% Yes
John Hume SDLP 26,11840.4% No
Michael Montgomery Republican Clubs 2,5303.9% No
Richard Foster Independent 8461.3% No

1979

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
William Ross Ulster Unionist 31,59249.7% Yes
Hugh Logue SDLP 19,18530.2% No
Arthur Barr Alliance 5,8309.2% No
Fergus McAteer Irish Independence 5,4898.6% No
Eamonn Melaugh Republican Clubs 8881.4% No
William Webster Independent Labour 6391.0% No

Margin Over Time

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

1852: Conservative margin 7.1 pts 1857: Conservative margin 10.3 pts 1859: Conservative margin 9.8 pts 1874: Liberal margin 10.8 pts 1880: Liberal margin 10.0 pts 1922: Ulster Unionist margin 51.4 pts 1924: Ulster Unionist margin 67.1 pts 1945: Ulster Unionist margin 3.4 pts 1950: Ulster Unionist margin 25.2 pts 1955: Ulster Unionist margin 29.0 pts 1959: Ulster Unionist margin 46.0 pts 1964: Ulster Unionist margin 28.2 pts 1966: Ulster Unionist margin 21.0 pts 1970: Ulster Unionist margin 16.5 pts Feb 1974: Ulster Unionist margin 15.0 pts Oct 1974: Ulster Unionist margin 14.0 pts 1979: Ulster Unionist margin 19.5 pts 1852 1857 1859 1874 1880 1922 1924 1945 1950 1955 1959 1964 1966 1970 Feb 1974 Oct 1974 1979

Trend

Londonderry has been contested at 29 general elections on record since 1832. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Conservative, Liberal, Ulster Unionist.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who won Londonderry in the 1979 general election?

Ulster Unionist won Londonderry in 1979 with 31,592 votes (49.7%), a majority of 12,407 votes over SDLP in second place.

Which parties have won Londonderry since 1832?

Since 1832, Londonderry has been won by: Conservative, Liberal, Ulster Unionist.

What was the closest result in Londonderry?

The closest result on record for Londonderry was 1945, when Ulster Unionist beat Irish Nationalist by just 2,653 votes (3.4 percentage points).

Did Londonderry ever elect more than one MP at a time?

Yes -- like most UK constituencies before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, Londonderry 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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