Compiled by EveryElectionResult.com's data team · Last updated 2026-08-30
Waterford elected 2 MPs at the 1880 general election: Henry Windsor Villiers-Stuart (Liberal) and John Aloysius Blake (Irish Parliamentary Party). This page covers every general election in Waterford 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
John Matthew Galwey (Repeal Association); Richard Keane (Liberal)
332
41.1% (top seat)
Robert Power (Liberal)
29 (2.7 pts)
37.2%
1835
Richard Musgrave (Repeal Association and Whig); Patrick Power (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1837
William Villiers-Stuart (Liberal); John Power (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1841
Robert Shapland Carew (Liberal); William Villiers-Stuart (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1847
Nicholas Mahon Power (Repeal Association); Robert Keating (Repeal Association)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1852
Nicholas Mahon Power (Independent Irish); John Esmonde (Independent Irish)
1,261
36.1% (top seat)
Richard Hely-Hutchinson (Conservative)
33 (0.9 pts)
59.9%
1857
Nicholas Mahon Power (Radical); John Esmonde (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1859
John Esmonde (Conservative); Walter Cecil Talbot (Conservative)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1865
John Henry de la Poer Beresford (Conservative); John Esmonde (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1868
Edmond James de Poher de la Poer (Liberal); John Esmonde (Liberal)
Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record
0.0%
1874
Charles William de la Poer Beresford (Conservative); John Esmonde (Irish Parliamentary Party)
1,390
49.0% (top seat)
Abraham Pearson Longbottom (Irish Parliamentary Party)
944 (26.2 pts)
54.3%
1880
Henry Windsor Villiers-Stuart (Liberal); John Aloysius Blake (Irish Parliamentary Party)
1,625
41.2% (top seat)
Charles William de la Poer Beresford (Conservative)
755 (17.8 pts)
67.7%
Full Result Breakdown by Election
1832 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Matthew Galwey
Repeal Association
443
41.1%
Yes
Richard Keane
Liberal
332
30.8%
Yes
Robert Power
Liberal
303
28.1%
No
1835 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Richard Musgrave
Repeal Association and Whig
Unopposed
Yes
Patrick Power
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1837 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
William Villiers-Stuart
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
John Power
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1841 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Robert Shapland Carew
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
William Villiers-Stuart
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1847 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Nicholas Mahon Power
Repeal Association
Unopposed
Yes
Robert Keating
Repeal Association
Unopposed
Yes
1852 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Nicholas Mahon Power
Independent Irish
1,404
36.1%
Yes
John Esmonde
Independent Irish
1,261
32.4%
Yes
Richard Hely-Hutchinson
Conservative
1,228
31.5%
No
1857 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Nicholas Mahon Power
Radical
Unopposed
Yes
John Esmonde
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1859 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Esmonde
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
Walter Cecil Talbot
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
1865 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
John Henry de la Poer Beresford
Conservative
Unopposed
Yes
John Esmonde
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1868 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Edmond James de Poher de la Poer
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
John Esmonde
Liberal
Unopposed
Yes
1874 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Charles William de la Poer Beresford
Conservative
1,767
49.0%
Yes
John Esmonde
Irish Parliamentary Party
1,390
38.6%
Yes
Abraham Pearson Longbottom
Irish Parliamentary Party
446
12.4%
No
1880 (2 seats)
Candidate
Party
Votes
Share
Elected
Henry Windsor Villiers-Stuart
Liberal
1,751
41.2%
Yes
John Aloysius Blake
Irish Parliamentary Party
1,625
38.3%
Yes
Charles William de la Poer Beresford
Conservative
870
20.5%
No
Margin Over Time
Winning margin (percentage points) at each election, coloured by the winning party.
Trend
Waterford has been contested at 12 general elections on record since 1832. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Repeal Association, Liberal, Repeal Association and Whig, Independent Irish, Radical, Conservative, Irish Parliamentary Party.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won Waterford in the 1880 general election?
Henry Windsor Villiers-Stuart (Liberal), John Aloysius Blake (Irish Parliamentary Party) won Waterford in 1880.
Which parties have won Waterford since 1832?
Since 1832, Waterford has been won by: Conservative, Independent Irish, Irish Parliamentary Party, Liberal, Radical, Repeal Association, Repeal Association and Whig.
What was the closest result in Waterford?
The closest result on record for Waterford was 1852, when Independent Irish beat Conservative by just 33 votes (0.9 percentage points).
Did Waterford ever elect more than one MP at a time?
Yes -- like most UK constituencies before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, Waterford 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.