Dorset | |
---|---|
Former county constituency for the House of Commons | |
County | Dorset |
1290–1885 | |
Seats | 1290–1832: Two 1832–1885: Three |
Replaced by | North Dorset, South Dorset, East Dorset, West Dorset |
Dorset was a county constituency covering Dorset in southern England, which elected two Members of Parliament (MPs), traditionally known as knights of the shire, to the House of Commons of England from 1290 until 1707, to the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800, and to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom until 1832.
The Great Reform Act increased its representation to three MPs with effect from the 1832 general election, and under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 the constituency was abolished for the 1885 election, and replaced by four single-member divisions: North Dorset, South Dorset, East Dorset and West Dorset.
When elections were contested, the bloc vote system was used, but contests were rare. Even after the 1832 Reforms, only three of the nineteen elections before 1885 were contested; in the others, the nominated candidates were returned without a vote. [1]
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Election | First member | First party [1] | Second member | Second party [1] | Third member | Third party [1] | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1832 | Lord Ashley | Tory [6] | William John Bankes | Tory [6] | Hon. William Ponsonby | Whig [6] [7] | |||
1834 | Conservative [6] | Conservative [6] | |||||||
1835 | Henry Sturt | Conservative [6] | |||||||
1837 | Hon. John Fox-Strangways | Whig [8] [9] [10] [6] | |||||||
1841 | George Bankes | Conservative [6] | |||||||
1846 by-election | Henry Ker Seymer | Conservative | John Floyer | Conservative | |||||
1856 by-election | Henry Sturt | Conservative | |||||||
1857 | Hon. Henry Portman | Whig [11] | |||||||
1859 | Liberal | ||||||||
1864 by-election | John Floyer | Conservative | |||||||
1876 by-election | Hon. Edward Digby | Conservative | |||||||
1885 | Constituency divided among North, South, East, and West Dorset. |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Whig | Edward Portman | Unopposed | |||
Tory | Henry Bankes | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | c. 3,500 | ||||
Whig hold | |||||
Tory hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Whig | Edward Portman | 1,699 | 39.3 | ||
Whig | John Calcraft | 1,452 | 33.6 | ||
Tory | Henry Bankes | 1,170 | 27.1 | ||
Majority | 282 | 6.5 | |||
Turnout | c. 2,161 | c. 54.0 | |||
Registered electors | c. 4,000 | ||||
Whig hold | |||||
Whig gain from Tory |
Calcraft's death caused a by-election.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tory | Anthony Ashley-Cooper | 1,847 | 50.5 | +23.4 | |
Whig | William Ponsonby | 1,811 | 49.5 | −23.4 | |
Majority | 36 | 1.0 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 3,658 | c. 91.5 | c. +37.5 | ||
Registered electors | c. 4,000 | ||||
Tory gain from Whig | Swing | +23.4 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tory | Anthony Ashley-Cooper | Unopposed | |||
Tory | William John Bankes | Unopposed | |||
Whig | William Ponsonby | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 5,632 | ||||
Tory win (new seat) | |||||
Tory gain from Whig | |||||
Whig hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Anthony Ashley-Cooper | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | Henry Sturt | Unopposed | |||
Whig | William Ponsonby | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 5,679 | ||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Whig hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Anthony Ashley-Cooper | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | Henry Sturt | Unopposed | |||
Whig | John Fox-Strangways | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 6,263 | ||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Whig hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Anthony Ashley-Cooper | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | Henry Sturt | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | George Bankes | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 6,870 | ||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative gain from Whig |
Ashley-Cooper and Sturt both resigned by accepting the office of Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds causing a by-election.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | John Floyer | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | Henry Ker Seymer | Unopposed | |||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | George Bankes | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | John Floyer | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | Henry Ker Seymer | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 6,275 | ||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold |
Bankes was appointed Judge Advocate General of the Armed Forces, requiring a by-election.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | George Bankes | Unopposed | |||
Conservative hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | George Bankes | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | John Floyer | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | Henry Ker Seymer | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 5,690 | ||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold |
Bankes' death caused a by-election.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Henry Sturt | Unopposed | |||
Conservative hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Whig | Henry Portman | 2,430 | 27.1 | New | |
Conservative | Henry Sturt | 2,197 | 24.5 | N/A | |
Conservative | Henry Ker Seymer | 2,177 | 24.3 | N/A | |
Conservative | John Floyer | 2,159 | 24.1 | N/A | |
Majority | 271 | 3.0 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 4,608 (est) | 82.0 (est) | N/A | ||
Registered electors | 6,203 | ||||
Whig gain from Conservative | Swing | N/A | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | N/A | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | N/A |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Henry Sturt | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | Henry Ker Seymer | Unopposed | |||
Liberal | Henry Portman | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 6,639 | ||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Liberal hold |
Seymer resigned, causing a by-election.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | John Floyer | Unopposed | |||
Conservative hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Henry Sturt | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | John Floyer | Unopposed | |||
Liberal | Henry Portman | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 6,203 | ||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Liberal hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Henry Sturt | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | John Floyer | Unopposed | |||
Liberal | Henry Portman | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 7,443 | ||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Liberal hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Henry Sturt | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | John Floyer | Unopposed | |||
Liberal | Henry Portman | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 7,293 | ||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Liberal hold |
Sturt was elevated to the peerage, becoming Lord Alington.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Edward Digby | 3,060 | 62.1 | N/A | |
Tenant Farmer | Robert Fowler [14] | 1,866 | 37.9 | New | |
Majority | 1,194 | 24.2 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 4,926 | 69.0 | N/A | ||
Registered electors | 7,142 | ||||
Conservative hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Edward Digby | Unopposed | |||
Conservative | John Floyer | Unopposed | |||
Liberal | Henry Portman | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 7,522 | ||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Conservative hold | |||||
Liberal hold |
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