Compiled by EveryElectionResult.com's data team · Last updated 2026-08-30
South Devon was won by Liberal Democrat at the 2024 general election, with a majority of 7,127 votes over Conservative. This page covers every general election in South Devon from 1832 to 2024.
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, 1832–2024
Election
Elected
Votes
Vote Share
Runner-up
Majority
Turnout
1832
John Russell (Whig); John Crocker Bulteel (Whig)
3,684
35.4% (top seat)
John Yarde-Buller (Conservative)
467 (4.4 pts)
71.7%
1835
John Russell (Whig); John Yarde-Buller (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1837
John Yarde-Buller (Conservative); Montagu Edmund Newcombe Parker (Conservative)
4,671
37.1% (top seat)
John Crocker Bulteel (Whig)
927 (6.9 pts)
62.1%
1841
John Yarde-Buller (Conservative); William Reginald Courtenay (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1847
John Yarde-Buller (Conservative); William Reginald Courtenay (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1852
John Yarde-Buller (Conservative); Ralph Lopes (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1857
John Yarde-Buller (Conservative); Lawrence Palk (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1859
Samuel Trehawke Kekewich (Conservative); Lawrence Palk (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1865
Samuel Trehawke Kekewich (Conservative); Lawrence Palk (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1868
Lopes Massey Lopes (Conservative); Samuel Trehawke Kekewich (Conservative)
3,233
35.3% (top seat)
John Russell (Liberal)
539 (5.9 pts)
56.9%
1874
John Carpenter Garnier (Conservative); Lopes Massey Lopes (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1880
John Carpenter Garnier (Conservative); Lopes Massey Lopes (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
2024
Caroline Voaden (Liberal Democrat)
22,540
46.0%
Anthony Mangnall (Conservative)
7,127 (14.5 pts)
68.0%
Full Result Breakdown by Election
1832 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Russell
Whig
3,782
35.4%
Yes
John Crocker Bulteel
Whig
3,684
34.5%
Yes
John Yarde-Buller
Conservative
3,217
30.1%
No
1835 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Russell
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
John Yarde-Buller
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1837 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Yarde-Buller
Conservative
4,974
37.1%
Yes
Montagu Edmund Newcombe Parker
Conservative
4,671
34.9%
Yes
John Crocker Bulteel
Whig
3,744
28.0%
No
1841 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Yarde-Buller
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
William Reginald Courtenay
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1847 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Yarde-Buller
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
William Reginald Courtenay
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1852 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Yarde-Buller
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Ralph Lopes
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1857 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Yarde-Buller
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Lawrence Palk
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1859 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Samuel Trehawke Kekewich
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Lawrence Palk
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1865 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Samuel Trehawke Kekewich
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Lawrence Palk
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1868 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Lopes Massey Lopes
Conservative
3,234
35.3%
Yes
Samuel Trehawke Kekewich
Conservative
3,233
35.3%
Yes
John Russell
Liberal
2,694
29.4%
No
1874 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Carpenter Garnier
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Lopes Massey Lopes
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1880 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Carpenter Garnier
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Lopes Massey Lopes
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
2024
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Caroline Voaden
Liberal Democrat
22,540
46.0%
Yes
Anthony Mangnall
Conservative
15,413
31.5%
No
Michael Bagley
Reform UK
6,363
13.0%
No
Daniel Steel
Labour
3,066
6.3%
No
Robert Bagnall
Green
1,497
3.1%
No
Becca Collings
Heritage Party
125
0.3%
No
Margin Over Time
Winning margin (percentage points) at each election, coloured by the winning party.
Trend
South Devon has been contested at 13 general elections on record since 1832. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Whig, Conservative, Liberal Democrat.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won South Devon in the 2024 general election?
Liberal Democrat won South Devon in 2024 with 22,540 votes (46.0%), a majority of 7,127 votes over Conservative in second place.
Which parties have won South Devon since 1832?
Since 1832, South Devon has been won by: Conservative, Liberal Democrat, Whig.
What was the closest result in South Devon?
The closest result on record for South Devon was 1832, when Whig beat Conservative by just 467 votes (4.4 percentage points).
Did South Devon ever elect more than one MP at a time?
Yes -- like most UK constituencies before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, South Devon 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.