The map above shows the results of the October 1974 UK General Election. The number of seats won out of 635 by the major parties (and % vote share) were as follows:
Labour: 319. Leader and Prime Minister: Harold Wilson.
Conservatives: 277. Leader: Edward Heath.
Liberal: 13. Leader: Jeremy Thorpe.
SNP: 11. Leader: Willie Wolfe.
Notable things about the October 1974 election include:
- This was the second election to take place in 1974, following a hung Parliament six months earlier. The leaders all remained the same, however, making this election something of a re-match.
- It is thought that Labour was able to eek out a tiny majority this time because it had shown some progress, such as by ending the miners’ strike.
- The SNP won 30% of the popular vote in Scotland and 11 seats – their best result until winning almost every seat in Scotland in 2015.
- After the election Heath was booted out as Conservative leader and replaced by the party’s first female leader, the Finchley MP Margaret Thatcher.
Other UK Elections.
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