The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy which, by legislation and convention, operates as a unitary parliamentary democracy. A hereditary monarch, currently King Charles III, serves as head of state while the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, currently Sir Keir Starmer since 2024, serves as the elected head of government.
The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a political alliance with the Conservative Party in opposition to Irish Home Rule. The two parties formed the ten-year-long coalition Unionist Government 1895–1905 but kept separate political funds and their own party organisations until a complete merger between the Liberal Unionist and the Conservative parties was agreed to in May 1912.
The January 1910 United Kingdom general election was held from 15 January to 10 February 1910. The government called the election in the midst of a constitutional crisis caused by the rejection of the People's Budget by the Conservative-dominated House of Lords, in order to get a mandate to pass the budget.
The 1906 United Kingdom general election was held from 12 January to 8 February 1906. The Liberals, led by Prime Minister Henry Campbell-Bannerman, won a landslide majority at the election. The Conservatives led by Arthur Balfour, who had been in government until the month before the election, lost more than half their seats, including party leader Balfour's own seat in Manchester East, leaving the party with its fewest recorded seats ever in history until 2024. The election saw a 5.4% swing from the Conservative Party to the Liberal Party, the largest-ever seen at the time. This has resulted in the 1906 general election being dubbed the "Liberal landslide", and is now ranked alongside the 1924, 1931, 1945, 1983, 1997, 2001, and 2024 general elections as one of the largest landslide election victories.
The 1852 United Kingdom general election was a watershed in the formation of the modern political parties of Britain. Following 1852, the Tory/Conservative party became, more completely, the party of the rural aristocracy, while the Whig/Liberal party became the party of the rising urban bourgeoisie in Britain. The results of the election were extremely close in terms of the numbers of seats won by the two main parties.
The 1832 United Kingdom general election was the first United Kingdom general election held in the Reformed House of Commons following the Reform Act, which introducing significant changes to the electoral system.
The 2010 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 6 May 2010, to elect Members of Parliament to the House of Commons. The election took place in 650 constituencies across the United Kingdom under the first-past-the-post system. The election resulted in a large swing to the opposition Conservative Party led by David Cameron similar to that seen in 1979, the last time a Conservative opposition had ousted a Labour government. The governing Labour Party led by the prime minister Gordon Brown lost the 66-seat majority it had previously enjoyed, but no party achieved the 326 seats needed for a majority. The Conservatives won the most votes and seats, but still fell 20 seats short. This resulted in a hung parliament where no party was able to command a majority in the House of Commons. This was only the second general election since the Second World War to return a hung parliament, the first being the February 1974 election. This election marked the start of Conservative government for the next 14 years.
The leader of the Conservative Party is the highest position within the United Kingdom's Conservative Party. The current holder of the position is Rishi Sunak, who was elected to the position on 24 October 2022, following his unopposed victory in the party's leadership election. Sunak announced his pending resignation as Conservative leader on 22 July 2024, and will remain party leader until a successor is elected.
The 1943 Darwen by-election was a by-election held on 15 December 1943 for the British House of Commons constituency of Darwen in Lancashire.
Hanley was a borough constituency in Staffordshire which returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom between 1885 and 1950. Elections were held using the first past the post voting system.
The 1906 Cockermouth by-election was a by-election held on 3 August 1906 for the British House of Commons constituency of Cockermouth.
The 1922 City of London by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 19 May 1922 for the British House of Commons constituency of City of London, which covered the "Square Mile" which was the United Kingdom's traditional financial district.
The 1924 City of London by-election was a parliamentary by-election held on 1 February 1924 for the British House of Commons constituency of City of London, which covered the "Square Mile" which was the United Kingdom's traditional financial district.
Austin Taylor was a Conservative Party, later Liberal Party, politician in the United Kingdom.
The 1908 Leeds South by-election was a parliamentary by-election for the British House of Commons constituency of Leeds South in the West Riding of Yorkshire held on 13 February 1908.
The 1904 St Albans by-election was a Parliamentary by-election held on 12 February 1904. The constituency returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system.
The 1904 City of London by-election was a parliamentary by-election held in England on 9 February 1904 for the House of Commons constituency of City of London.
The Glasgow Central by-election was a Parliamentary by-election held on 2 March 1909. The constituency returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system.
The 1908 Manchester North West by-election was a Parliamentary by-election held on 24 April 1908 for the constituency of Manchester North West. The constituency returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system.
The 1911 Cambridge University by-election was a Parliamentary by-election held on 11-16 February 1911. The constituency returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system.
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