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Plymouth — UK General Election Results

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

Plymouth elected 2 MPs at the Dec 1910 general election: Waldord Astor (Conservative) and Arthur Shirley Benn (Conservative). This page covers every general election in Plymouth from 1832 to Dec 1910.

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–Dec 1910

Election Elected Votes Vote Share Runner-up Majority Turnout
1832 Thomas Bewes (Whig); John Collier (Whig) Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record 0.0%
1835 John Collier (Whig); Thomas Bewes (Whig) 687 34.7% (top seat) George Cockburn (Conservative) 20 (1.0 pts) 66.0%
1837 John Collier (Whig); Thomas Bewes (Whig) 772 30.4% (top seat) George Cockburn (Conservative) 221 (8.6 pts) 70.9%
1841 Thomas Gill (Whig); Hugh Fortescue (Whig) 787 38.0% (top seat) John Johnson (Conservative) 235 (10.9 pts) 56.8%
1847 Hugh Fortescue (Whig); Roundell Palmer (Peelite) 837 36.4% (top seat) Charles Biggs Calmady (Chartist) 68 (2.7 pts) 58.1%
1852 Charles John Mare (Conservative); Robert Porrett Collier (Whig) 1,004 31.2% (top seat) George Thomas Braine (Whig) 98 (2.9 pts) 66.8%
1857 Robert Porrett Collier (Whig); James White (Whig) 1,106 40.3% (top seat) John Hardy (Conservative) 484 (16.7 pts) 55.6%
1859 William Henry Edgcumbe (Conservative); Robert Porrett Collier (Liberal) 1,086 36.0% (top seat) James White (Liberal) 122 (3.8 pts) 59.2%
1865 Robert Porrett Collier (Liberal); Walter Morrison (Liberal) 1,218 35.5% (top seat) Richard Stuart Lane (Conservative) 71 (1.9 pts) 62.2%
1868 Robert Porrett Collier (Liberal); Walter Morrison (Liberal) 2,065 36.9% (top seat) Richard Stuart Lane (Conservative) 559 (9.9 pts) 58.4%
1874 Edward Bates (Conservative); Sampson Samuel Lloyd (Conservative) 2,000 27.4% (top seat) George Young (Liberal) 286 (3.8 pts) 78.9%
1880 Edward Bates (Conservative); Peter Stewart Macliver (Liberal) 2,406 25.3% (top seat) George Young (Liberal) 4 (0.0 pts) 86.8%
1885 Edward Bates (Conservative); Edward George Clarke (Conservative) 4,240 26.1% (top seat) Peter Stewart Macliver (Liberal) 108 (0.7 pts) 82.8%
1886 Edward George Clarke (Conservative); Edward Bates (Conservative) 4,133 28.1% (top seat) Thomas English Stephens (Liberal) 878 (6.0 pts) 71.3%
1892 Edward George Clarke (Conservative); William George Pearce (Conservative) 5,081 25.5% (top seat) Charles Harrison (Liberal) 160 (0.8 pts) 81.1%
1895 Edward George Clarke (Conservative); Charles Harrison (Liberal) 5,482 25.6% (top seat) Evelyn Hubbard (Conservative) 26 (0.1 pts) 81.8%
1900 Henry Edward Duke (Conservative); Ivor Churchill Guest (Conservative) 6,005 26.4% (top seat) Sigismund Ferdinand Mendl (Liberal) 545 (2.4 pts) 84.8%
1906 Thomas William Dobson (Liberal); Charles Edward Mallet (Liberal) 8,914 29.4% (top seat) Henry Edward Duke (Conservative) 2,367 (7.7 pts) 85.3%
Jan 1910 Charles Edward Mallet (Liberal); Aneurin Williams (Liberal) 7,961 25.9% (top seat) Waldorf Astor (Conservative) 311 (1.0 pts) 87.9%
Dec 1910 Waldord Astor (Conservative); Arthur Shirley Benn (Conservative) 7,942 26.4% (top seat) Charles Edward Mallet (Liberal) 563 (1.8 pts) 85.5%

Full Result Breakdown by Election

1832 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Thomas Bewes Whig Unopposed Yes
John Collier Whig Unopposed Yes

1835 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
John Collier Whig 72034.7% Yes
Thomas Bewes Whig 68733.1% Yes
George Cockburn Conservative 66732.2% No

1837 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
John Collier Whig 78030.4% Yes
Thomas Bewes Whig 77230.1% Yes
George Cockburn Conservative 55121.4% No
Price Blackwood Conservative 46618.1% No

1841 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Thomas Gill Whig 82138.0% Yes
Hugh Fortescue Whig 78736.4% Yes
John Johnson Conservative 55225.6% No

1847 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Hugh Fortescue Whig 92136.4% Yes
Roundell Palmer Peelite 83733.1% Yes
Charles Biggs Calmady Chartist 76930.4% No

1852 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Charles John Mare Conservative 1,03631.2% Yes
Robert Porrett Collier Whig 1,00430.3% Yes
George Thomas Braine Whig 90627.3% No
Bickham Escott Radical 37211.2% No

1857 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robert Porrett Collier Whig 1,16740.3% Yes
James White Whig 1,10638.2% Yes
John Hardy Conservative 62221.5% No

1859 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
William Henry Edgcumbe Conservative 1,15336.0% Yes
Robert Porrett Collier Liberal 1,08633.9% Yes
James White Liberal 96430.1% No

1865 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robert Porrett Collier Liberal 1,29935.5% Yes
Walter Morrison Liberal 1,21833.2% Yes
Richard Stuart Lane Conservative 1,14731.3% No

1868 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Robert Porrett Collier Liberal 2,08636.9% Yes
Walter Morrison Liberal 2,06536.5% Yes
Richard Stuart Lane Conservative 1,50626.6% No

1874 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Edward Bates Conservative 2,04527.4% Yes
Sampson Samuel Lloyd Conservative 2,00026.8% Yes
George Young Liberal 1,71423.0% No
Walter Morrison Liberal 1,70022.8% No

1880 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Edward Bates Conservative 2,44225.3% Yes
Peter Stewart Macliver Liberal 2,40625.0% Yes
George Young Liberal 2,40224.9% No
Sampson Samuel Lloyd Conservative 2,38424.7% No

1885 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Edward Bates Conservative 4,35426.1% Yes
Edward George Clarke Conservative 4,24025.4% Yes
Peter Stewart Macliver Liberal 4,13224.8% No
Reginald Baliol Brett Liberal 3,96823.8% No

1886 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Edward George Clarke Conservative 4,13728.1% Yes
Edward Bates Conservative 4,13328.1% Yes
Thomas English Stephens Liberal 3,25522.1% No
Edward Strachey Liberal 3,17521.6% No

1892 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Edward George Clarke Conservative 5,08125.5% Yes
William George Pearce Conservative 5,08125.5% Yes
Charles Harrison Liberal 4,92124.7% No
George Lidgett Liberal 4,86124.4% No

1895 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Edward George Clarke Conservative 5,57525.6% Yes
Charles Harrison Liberal 5,48225.1% Yes
Evelyn Hubbard Conservative 5,45625.0% No
Sigismund Ferdinand Mendl Liberal 5,29824.3% No

1900 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Henry Edward Duke Conservative 6,00926.4% Yes
Ivor Churchill Guest Conservative 6,00526.4% Yes
Sigismund Ferdinand Mendl Liberal 5,46024.0% No
Henry de Rosenbach Walker Liberal 5,26423.2% No

1906 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Thomas William Dobson Liberal 9,02129.4% Yes
Charles Edward Mallet Liberal 8,91429.0% Yes
Henry Edward Duke Conservative 6,54721.3% No
Herbert George Smith Conservative 6,23420.3% No

Jan 1910 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Charles Edward Mallet Liberal 8,09125.9% Yes
Aneurin Williams Liberal 7,96125.5% Yes
Waldorf Astor Conservative 7,65024.5% No
Henry Mortimer Durand Conservative 7,55624.2% No

Dec 1910 (2 seats)

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Waldord Astor Conservative 8,11326.4% Yes
Arthur Shirley Benn Conservative 7,94225.9% Yes
Charles Edward Mallet Liberal 7,37924.0% No
Aneurin Williams Liberal 7,26023.7% No

Margin Over Time

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

1835: Whig margin 1.0 pts 1837: Whig margin 8.6 pts 1841: Whig margin 10.9 pts 1847: Whig margin 2.7 pts 1852: Conservative margin 2.9 pts 1857: Whig margin 16.7 pts 1859: Conservative margin 3.8 pts 1865: Liberal margin 1.9 pts 1868: Liberal margin 9.9 pts 1874: Conservative margin 3.8 pts 1880: Conservative margin 0.0 pts 1885: Conservative margin 0.7 pts 1886: Conservative margin 6.0 pts 1892: Conservative margin 0.8 pts 1895: Conservative margin 0.1 pts 1900: Conservative margin 2.4 pts 1906: Liberal margin 7.7 pts Jan 1910: Liberal margin 1.0 pts Dec 1910: Conservative margin 1.8 pts 1835 1837 1841 1847 1852 1857 1859 1865 1868 1874 1880 1885 1886 1892 1895 1900 1906 Jan 1910 Dec 1910

Trend

Plymouth has been contested at 20 general elections on record since 1832. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Whig, Peelite, Conservative, Liberal.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who won Plymouth in the Dec 1910 general election?

Waldord Astor (Conservative), Arthur Shirley Benn (Conservative) won Plymouth in Dec 1910.

Which parties have won Plymouth since 1832?

Since 1832, Plymouth has been won by: Conservative, Liberal, Peelite, Whig.

What was the closest result in Plymouth?

The closest result on record for Plymouth was 1880, when Conservative beat Liberal by just 4 votes (0.0 percentage points).

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

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