Compiled by EveryElectionResult.com's data team · Last updated 2026-08-30
South Durham elected 2 MPs at the 1880 general election: Joseph Whitwell Pease (Liberal) and Frederick William Lambton (Liberal). This page covers every general election in South Durham 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
Joseph Pease (Whig); John Bowes (Whig)
2,218
35.9% (top seat)
Robert Duncombe Shafto (Whig)
377 (5.9 pts)
73.0%
1835
Joseph Pease (Whig); John Bowes (Whig)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1837
Joseph Pease (Whig); John Bowes (Whig)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1841
Harry George Vane (Whig); John Bowes (Whig)
2,483
37.6% (top seat)
James Farrer (Conservative)
744 (11.0 pts)
70.2%
1847
Harry George Vane (Whig); James Farrer (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1852
Harry George Vane (Whig); James Farrer (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1857
Henry Pease (Whig); Harry George Vane (Whig)
2,542
35.7% (top seat)
James Farrer (Conservative)
451 (6.3 pts)
64.7%
1859
Henry Pease (Liberal); James Farrer (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1865
Joseph Whitwell Pease (Liberal); Charles Freville Surtees (Conservative)
3,211
35.7% (top seat)
Frederick Edward Blackett Beaumont (Liberal)
286 (3.0 pts)
65.7%
1868
Joseph Whitwell Pease (Liberal); Frederick Edward Blackett Beaumont (Liberal)
4,024
28.3% (top seat)
Charles Freville Surtees (Conservative)
310 (2.0 pts)
81.6%
1874
Joseph Whitwell Pease (Liberal); Frederick Edward Blackett Beaumont (Liberal)
4,461
36.5% (top seat)
Charles Stewart Vane-Tempest (Conservative)
574 (4.4 pts)
64.7%
1880
Joseph Whitwell Pease (Liberal); Frederick William Lambton (Liberal)
5,912
37.3% (top seat)
Charles Freville Surtees (Conservative)
1,868 (11.8 pts)
68.5%
Full Result Breakdown by Election
1832 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Joseph Pease
Whig
2,273
35.9%
Yes
John Bowes
Whig
2,218
35.0%
Yes
Robert Duncombe Shafto
Whig
1,841
29.1%
No
1835 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Joseph Pease
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
John Bowes
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
1837 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Joseph Pease
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
John Bowes
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
1841 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Harry George Vane
Whig
2,547
37.6%
Yes
John Bowes
Whig
2,483
36.7%
Yes
James Farrer
Conservative
1,739
25.7%
No
1847 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Harry George Vane
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
James Farrer
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1852 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Harry George Vane
Whig
Unopposed
Yes
James Farrer
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1857 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Henry Pease
Whig
2,570
35.7%
Yes
Harry George Vane
Whig
2,542
35.3%
Yes
James Farrer
Conservative
2,091
29.0%
No
1859 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Henry Pease
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
James Farrer
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1865 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Joseph Whitwell Pease
Liberal
3,401
35.7%
Yes
Charles Freville Surtees
Conservative
3,211
33.7%
Yes
Frederick Edward Blackett Beaumont
Liberal
2,925
30.7%
No
1868 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Joseph Whitwell Pease
Liberal
4,319
28.3%
Yes
Frederick Edward Blackett Beaumont
Liberal
4,024
26.4%
Yes
Charles Freville Surtees
Conservative
3,714
24.3%
No
Gustavus Ruell Hamilton-Ruell
Conservative
3,206
21.0%
No
1874 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Joseph Whitwell Pease
Liberal
4,792
36.5%
Yes
Frederick Edward Blackett Beaumont
Liberal
4,461
33.9%
Yes
Charles Stewart Vane-Tempest
Conservative
3,887
29.6%
No
1880 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Joseph Whitwell Pease
Liberal
5,930
37.3%
Yes
Frederick William Lambton
Liberal
5,912
37.2%
Yes
Charles Freville Surtees
Conservative
4,044
25.5%
No
Margin Over Time
Winning margin (percentage points) at each election, coloured by the winning party.
Trend
South Durham 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 South Durham in the 1880 general election?
Joseph Whitwell Pease (Liberal), Frederick William Lambton (Liberal) won South Durham in 1880.
Which parties have won South Durham since 1832?
Since 1832, South Durham has been won by: Conservative, Liberal, Whig.
What was the closest result in South Durham?
The closest result on record for South Durham was 1868, when Liberal beat Conservative by just 310 votes (2.0 percentage points).
Did South Durham ever elect more than one MP at a time?
Yes -- like most UK constituencies before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, South Durham 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.