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Torbay — UK General Election Results

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

Torbay was won by Liberal Democrat at the 2024 general election, with a majority of 5,349 votes over Conservative. This page covers every general election in Torbay from Feb 1974 to 2024.

Full Election History, Feb 1974–2024

Election Elected Votes Vote Share Runner-up Majority Turnout
Feb 1974 Frederic Bennett (Conservative) 33,163 48.5% Bridget Trethewey (Liberal) 12,408 (18.2 pts) 80.3%
Oct 1974 Frederic Bennett (Conservative) 30,208 48.4% John Goss (Liberal) 12,438 (19.9 pts) 73.0%
1979 Frederic Bennett (Conservative) 36,099 54.6% Michael Mitchell (Liberal) 20,868 (31.6 pts) 75.1%
1983 Frederic Bennett (Conservative) 25,721 52.6% Michael Mitchell (Liberal) 6,555 (13.4 pts) 72.6%
1987 Rupert Allason (Conservative) 29,029 54.0% Nicholas Bye (Liberal) 8,820 (16.4 pts) 76.3%
1992 Rupert Allason (Conservative) 28,624 49.9% Adrian Sanders (Liberal Democrat) 5,787 (10.1 pts) 80.6%
1997 Adrian Sanders (Liberal Democrat) 21,094 39.6% Rupert Allason (Conservative) 12 (0.0 pts) 73.8%
2001 Adrian Sanders (Liberal Democrat) 24,015 50.5% Christian Sweeting (Conservative) 6,708 (14.1 pts) 65.7%
2005 Adrian Sanders (Liberal Democrat) 19,317 40.8% Marcus Wood (Conservative) 2,029 (4.3 pts) 61.9%
2010 Adrian Sanders (Liberal Democrat) 23,126 47.0% Marcus Wood (Conservative) 4,078 (8.3 pts) 64.6%
2015 Kevin Foster (Conservative) 19,551 40.7% Adrian Sanders (Liberal Democrat) 3,286 (6.8 pts) 63.1%
2017 Kevin Foster (Conservative) 27,141 53.0% Deborah Brewer (Liberal Democrat) 14,283 (27.9 pts) 67.5%
2019 Kevin Foster (Conservative) 29,863 59.2% Lee Howgate (Liberal Democrat) 17,749 (35.2 pts) 67.4%
2024 Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat) 18,937 41.1% Kevin Foster (Conservative) 5,349 (11.6 pts) 60.7%

Full Result Breakdown by Election

Feb 1974

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Frederic Bennett Conservative 33,16348.5% Yes
Bridget Trethewey Liberal 20,75530.4% No
Jack Tench Labour 14,38921.1% No

Oct 1974

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Frederic Bennett Conservative 30,20848.4% Yes
John Goss Liberal 17,77028.5% No
Jack Tench Labour 14,44123.1% No

1979

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Frederic Bennett Conservative 36,09954.6% Yes
Michael Mitchell Liberal 15,23123.1% No
Elaine Fear Labour 12,91919.6% No
David Abrahams Green 1,1611.8% No
June Spry National Front 6471.0% No

1983

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Frederic Bennett Conservative 25,72152.6% Yes
Michael Mitchell Liberal 19,16639.2% No
Philip Rackley Labour 3,5217.2% No
Anne Murray Independent 5001.0% No

1987

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Rupert Allason Conservative 29,02954.0% Yes
Nicholas Bye Liberal 20,20937.6% No
Gerald Taylor Labour 4,5388.4% No

1992

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Rupert Allason Conservative 28,62449.9% Yes
Adrian Sanders Liberal Democrat 22,83739.8% No
Peter Truscott Labour 5,5039.6% No
Robert Jones National Front 2680.5% No
Alison Thomas Natural Law 1570.3% No

1997

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Adrian Sanders Liberal Democrat 21,09439.6% Yes
Rupert Allason Conservative 21,08239.5% No
Michael Morey Labour 7,92314.9% No
Graham Booth UKIP 1,9623.7% No
Bruce Cowling Liberal 1,1612.2% No
Paul Wild Rainbow Dream Ticket 1000.2% No

2001

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Adrian Sanders Liberal Democrat 24,01550.5% Yes
Christian Sweeting Conservative 17,30736.4% No
John MacKay Labour 4,4849.4% No
Graham Booth UKIP 1,5123.2% No
Pam Neale Independent 2510.5% No

2005

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Adrian Sanders Liberal Democrat 19,31740.8% Yes
Marcus Wood Conservative 17,28836.5% No
David Pedrick-Friend Labour 6,97214.7% No
Graham Booth UKIP 3,7267.9% No

2010

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Adrian Sanders Liberal Democrat 23,12647.0% Yes
Marcus Wood Conservative 19,04838.7% No
David Pedrick-Friend Labour 3,2316.6% No
Julien Parrott UKIP 2,6285.3% No
Ann Conway BNP 7091.4% No
Sam Moss Green 4681.0% No

2015

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Kevin Foster Conservative 19,55140.7% Yes
Adrian Sanders Liberal Democrat 16,26533.8% No
Tony McIntyre UKIP 6,54013.6% No
Su Maddock Labour 4,1668.7% No
Paula Hermes Green 1,5573.2% No

2017

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Kevin Foster Conservative 27,14153.0% Yes
Deborah Brewer Liberal Democrat 12,85825.1% No
Paul Raybould Labour 9,31018.2% No
Tony McIntyre UKIP 1,2132.4% No
Sam Moss Green 6521.3% No

2019

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Kevin Foster Conservative 29,86359.2% Yes
Lee Howgate Liberal Democrat 12,11424.0% No
Michele Middleditch Labour 6,56213.0% No
Sam Moss Green 1,2392.5% No
James Channer Independent 6481.3% No

2024

CandidatePartyVotesShareElected
Steve Darling Liberal Democrat 18,93741.1% Yes
Kevin Foster Conservative 13,58829.5% No
Gordon Scott Reform UK 8,66018.8% No
Chris Wongsosaputro Labour 3,2767.1% No
Charlie West Green 1,4203.1% No
Paul Moor Workers Party of Britain 2340.5% No

Margin Over Time

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

Feb 1974: Conservative margin 18.2 pts Oct 1974: Conservative margin 19.9 pts 1979: Conservative margin 31.6 pts 1983: Conservative margin 13.4 pts 1987: Conservative margin 16.4 pts 1992: Conservative margin 10.1 pts 1997: Liberal Democrat margin 0.0 pts 2001: Liberal Democrat margin 14.1 pts 2005: Liberal Democrat margin 4.3 pts 2010: Liberal Democrat margin 8.3 pts 2015: Conservative margin 6.8 pts 2017: Conservative margin 27.9 pts 2019: Conservative margin 35.2 pts 2024: Liberal Democrat margin 11.6 pts Feb 1974 Oct 1974 1979 1983 1987 1992 1997 2001 2005 2010 2015 2017 2019 2024

Trend

Torbay has been contested at 14 general elections on record since Feb 1974. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Conservative, Liberal Democrat.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who won Torbay in the 2024 general election?

Liberal Democrat won Torbay in 2024 with 18,937 votes (41.1%), a majority of 5,349 votes over Conservative in second place.

Which parties have won Torbay since Feb 1974?

Since Feb 1974, Torbay has been won by: Conservative, Liberal Democrat.

What was the closest result in Torbay?

The closest result on record for Torbay was 1997, when Liberal Democrat beat Conservative by just 12 votes (0.0 percentage points).

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