Compiled by EveryElectionResult.com's data team · Last updated 2026-08-30
North Staffordshire elected 2 MPs at the 1880 general election: William Young Craig (Liberal) and Harry Tichborne Davenport (Conservative). This page covers every general election in North Staffordshire 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
Oswald Mosley (Whig); Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller (Whig)
4,595
37.4% (top seat)
Jesse David Watts-Russell (Conservative)
1,208 (9.5 pts)
72.9%
1835
Oswald Mosley (Whig); Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller (Whig)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1837
William Bingham Baring (Conservative); Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller (Whig)
3,182
43.9% (top seat)
Oswald Mosley (Whig)
831 (8.4 pts)
51.7%
1841
Charles Bowyer Adderley (Conservative); Jesse David Watts-Russell (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1847
Charles Bowyer Adderley (Conservative); George Granville Francis Egerton (Conservative)
4,076
35.5% (top seat)
Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller (Whig)
723 (6.3 pts)
61.0%
1852
Charles Bowyer Adderley (Conservative); Smith Child (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1857
Charles Bowyer Adderley (Conservative); Smith Child (Conservative)
3,865
37.4% (top seat)
Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller (Whig)
845 (7.7 pts)
57.7%
1859
Charles Bowyer Adderley (Conservative); Charles John Chetwynd-Talbot (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1865
Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller (Liberal); Charles Bowyer Adderley (Conservative)
4,416
35.3% (top seat)
Charles John Chetwynd-Talbot (Conservative)
363 (2.8 pts)
61.2%
1868
Charles Bowyer Adderley (Conservative); Edward Manningham-Buller (Liberal)
0
0.0% (top seat)
None (None)
None (None pts)
100.0%
1874
Charles Bowyer Adderley (Conservative); Colin Minton Campbell (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1880
William Young Craig (Liberal); Harry Tichborne Davenport (Conservative)
4,333
37.3% (top seat)
Robert William Hanbury (Conservative)
569 (4.4 pts)
58.9%
Full Result Breakdown by Election
1832 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Oswald Mosley
Whig
4,777
37.4%
Yes
Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller
Whig
4,595
36.0%
Yes
Jesse David Watts-Russell
Conservative
3,387
26.5%
No
1835 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Oswald Mosley
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
1837 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
William Bingham Baring
Conservative
4,332
43.9%
Yes
Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller
Whig
3,182
32.3%
Yes
Oswald Mosley
Whig
2,351
23.8%
No
1841 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Charles Bowyer Adderley
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Jesse David Watts-Russell
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1847 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Charles Bowyer Adderley
Conservative
4,092
35.5%
Yes
George Granville Francis Egerton
Conservative
4,076
35.4%
Yes
Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller
Whig
3,353
29.1%
No
1852 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Charles Bowyer Adderley
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Smith Child
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1857 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Charles Bowyer Adderley
Conservative
4,112
37.4%
Yes
Smith Child
Conservative
3,865
35.1%
Yes
Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller
Whig
3,020
27.5%
No
1859 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Charles Bowyer Adderley
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Charles John Chetwynd-Talbot
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1865 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Edward Buller-Yarde-Buller
Liberal
4,628
35.3%
Yes
Charles Bowyer Adderley
Conservative
4,416
33.7%
Yes
Charles John Chetwynd-Talbot
Conservative
4,053
30.9%
No
1868 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Charles Bowyer Adderley
Conservative
0
0.0%
Yes
Edward Manningham-Buller
Liberal
0
0.0%
Yes
1874 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Charles Bowyer Adderley
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Colin Minton Campbell
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1880 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
William Young Craig
Liberal
4,821
37.3%
Yes
Harry Tichborne Davenport
Conservative
4,333
33.5%
Yes
Robert William Hanbury
Conservative
3,764
29.1%
No
Margin Over Time
Winning margin (percentage points) at each election, coloured by the winning party.
Trend
North Staffordshire has been contested at 12 general elections on record since 1832. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Whig, Conservative, Liberal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won North Staffordshire in the 1880 general election?
William Young Craig (Liberal), Harry Tichborne Davenport (Conservative) won North Staffordshire in 1880.
Which parties have won North Staffordshire since 1832?
Since 1832, North Staffordshire has been won by: Conservative, Liberal, Whig.
What was the closest result in North Staffordshire?
The closest result on record for North Staffordshire was 1865, when Liberal beat Conservative by just 363 votes (2.8 percentage points).
Did North Staffordshire ever elect more than one MP at a time?
Yes -- like most UK constituencies before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, North Staffordshire 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.