Hastings (UK Parliament constituency)

Hastings
Former Borough constituency for the House of Commons
1366–1983
Seats	one
Replaced by	Hastings and Rye

Hastings was a parliamentary constituency in Sussex. It returned two Members of Parliament to the Parliament of England until 1707, Parliament of Great Britain before 1801 and the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until the 1885 general election, when its representation was reduced to one member. It was abolished for the 1983 general election, when it was partially replaced by the new Hastings and Rye constituency.

Boundaries

1918–1950: The County Borough of Hastings.

1950–1955: The County Borough of Hastings, the Municipal Borough of Rye, and the Rural District of Battle (except the parishes of Burwash, Etchingham and Ticehurst). ^[1]

1955–1983: The County Borough of Hastings. ^[2]

Members of Parliament

MPs 1366–1640

Parliament	First member	Second member
1386	John Clyvessend	Edward Martham [3]
1378	John Salerne
1382 (May)	John Salerne
1383 (Feb)	John Salerne
1383 (Oct)	John Salerne
1388 (Feb)	John Clyvessend	Edward Martham [3]
1388 (Sep)	Richard Bannok	John Scott [3]
1390 (Jan)	John Clyvessend	Richard Wybard [3]
1390 (Nov)
1391	John Clyvessend	Richard Bannok [3]
1393	John Scott	John Sharp [3]
1394
1395	Edward Martham	John Hokere [3]
1397 (Jan)	John Clyvessend	John Hokere [3]
1397 (Sep)
1399	Edward Martham	Henry Mordant [3]
1401
1402	John Sharp	Robert Burgrove [3]
1404 (Jan)
1404 (Oct)
1406	Henry Mordant	John Bexle [3]
1407	Robert Burgrove	Thomas Wybard [3]
1410	Edward Martham	John Harry [3]
1411
1413 (Feb)
1413 (May)	Henry Mordant	Richard Huntingdon [3]
1414 (Apr)
1414 (Nov)	Jihn Sharp	Thomas Julyan [3]
1415
1416 (Mar)
1416 (Oct)
1417	John Lyvett	Richard Huntingdon [3]
1419	Simon Lymbergh	John Martham [3]
1420	Simon Lymbergh	William Courthope [3]
1421 (May)	John Parker	William Courthope [3]
1421 (Dec)	Richard Huntingdon	William Courthope [3]
1510	No names known [4]
1512	Robert Hall	Henry Benever [4]
1515	?
1523	Edmund Jacklin alias Bocher	Edmund Franke [4]
1529	Richard Calveley	Thomas Shoyswell [4]
by 1534	John Durrant	John Taylor [4]
1536	?John Durrant	?John Taylor [4]
1539	?
1542	John Franke	Richard Bishop [4]
1545	?
1547	Sir William Stafford	John Isted [4]
1553 (Mar)	John Isted	?
1553 (Oct)	Thomas Rhodes	John Peyton [4]
1554 (Apr)	John Franke	John Isted [4]
1554 (Nov)	Thomas Rhodes	John Peyton [4]
1555	Thomas Rhodes	Roger Manwood [4]
1558	Thomas Brett	Henry Tennant [4]
1559	John Franke	James Hobson [5]
1562/3	Sir William Damsell [6]	Richard Lyffe [5]
1571	Richard Lyffe	James Bryan [5]
1572	Richard Lyffe	Thomas Lake [5]
1584	Thomas Lake	Thomas Phillips [5]
1586	Thomas Lake	Thomas Phillips [5]
1588/9	Richard Lyffe	John Parker [5]
1593	Richard Lyffe	Henry Apsley [5]
1597	Richard Lyffe	Edmund Pelham [5]
1601	Sir Thomas Shirley	Richard Lyffe [5]
1604–1611	Richard Lyffe died and replaced by James Lasher	Sir George Carew ennobled and replaced 1605 by Sir Edward Hales [7]
1614	Sir Edward Hales	James Lasher
1621	Samuel Moore	James Lasher
1624	Nicholas Eversfield	Samuel Moore
1625	Nicholas Eversfield	Sackville Crowe
1626	Sir Dudley Carleton replaced by Sir Thomas Parker	Nicholas Eversfield
1628	John Ashburnham	Nicholas Eversfield

MPs 1640–1885

Election	1st Member		1st Party	2nd Member		2nd Party
April 1640		Sir John Baker			Robert Reed
November 1640		John Ashburnham	Royalist		(Sir) Thomas Eversfield	Royalist
February 1644	Ashburnham and Eversfield disabled from sitting – both seats vacant
1645		John Pelham			Roger Gratwick
December 1648	Pelham excluded in Pride's Purge – seat vacant
1653	Hastings was unrepresented in the Barebones Parliament and the First and Second Parliaments of the Protectorate
January 1659		Samuel Gott			Nicholas Delves
May 1659	Not represented in the restored Rump
April 1660		Sir Denny Ashburnham			Nicholas Delves
1661					Edmund Waller
1679		Sir Robert Parker			John Ashburnham
1681					Thomas Mun
1685		Sir Denny Ashburnham			John Ashburnham
Jan 1689		Thomas Mun
Aug 1689					John Beaumont
1690		Peter Gott
1695		John Pulteney			Robert Austen
1698					Peter Gott
1701					John Mounsher
1702					Hon. William Ashburnham
Feb 1710					John Ashburnham	Tory
Oct 1710		Sir William Ashburnham			Sir Joseph Martin
1713		Archibald Hutcheson
1715					Henry Pelham
1722					Sir William Ashburnham
1727		Thomas Townshend [8]
1728		Thomas Pelham
1741		James Pelham			Andrew Stone	Whig
1761		Hon. James Brudenell			William Ashburnham
1768		Samuel Martin
1774		Henry Temple			Charles Jenkinson
1780					John Ord
1784		John Dawes			John Stanley	Tory [9]
1790		Sir Richard Pepper Arden	Tory [9]
1794		Robert Dundas	Tory [9]
1796		Sir James Sanderson	Tory [9]		Nicholas Vansittart	Tory [9]
1798		William Sturges	Tory [9]
1802		Sylvester Douglas	Tory [9]		George Gunning	Tory [9]
1806		Sir John Nicholl			Sir William Fowle Middleton	Tory [9]
1807		George Canning	Tory [9]		Sir Abraham Hume	Tory [9]
1812		James Dawkins	Tory [9]
1818					George Peter Holford	Tory [9]
1820					William Scott	Tory [9]
June 1826		Sir William Curtis, Bt.	Tory [9]		Sir Charles Wetherell	Tory [9]
December 1826		Evelyn Denison	Whig [9]		James Lushington	Tory [9]
1827					Joseph Planta	Tory [9]
1830		Sir Henry Fane	Tory [9]
1831		John Ashley Warre	Whig [10] [11] [12] [9]		Frederick North	Whig [13] [10] [14] [9]
1835		Howard Elphinstone	Radical [12] [15] [16] [17] [18]
1837		Joseph Planta	Conservative [9]		Robert Hollond	Radical [19] [20] [21]
1844		Musgrave Brisco	Conservative [9]
1852					Patrick Francis Robertson	Conservative
1854		Frederick North	Whig [13] [10] [14]
1859			Liberal		Lord Harry Vane	Liberal
1864					Hon. George Waldegrave-Leslie	Liberal
1865		Patrick Francis Robertson	Conservative
1868		Thomas Brassey	Liberal		Frederick North	Liberal
1869					Ughtred Kay-Shuttleworth	Liberal
1880					Charles James Murray	Conservative
1883					Henry Bret Ince	Liberal
1885	Redistribution of Seats Act: representation reduced to one member

MPs 1885–1983

Election		Member	Party
	1885	Thomas Brassey	Liberal
	1886	Wilson Noble	Conservative
	1895	William Lucas-Shadwell	Conservative
	1900	Freeman Freeman-Thomas	Liberal
	1906	Harvey du Cros	Conservative
	1908 by-election	Sir Arthur du Cros	Conservative
	1918	Laurance Lyon	Coalition Conservative
	1921 by-election	Lord Eustace Percy	Coalition Conservative
	1937 by-election	Maurice Hely-Hutchinson	Conservative
	1945	Sir Neill Cooper-Key	Conservative
	1970	Kenneth Warren	Conservative
1983		constituency abolished: see Hastings and Rye

Elections

Elections in the 1830s

General election 1830: Hastings ^{[9] [22]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Tory	Henry Fane	17	4.1
	Tory	Joseph Planta	17	4.1
	Whig	John Ashley Warre	174	41.5
	Whig	Robert Otway-Cave	157	37.5
	Whig	William Taddy	54	12.9
Majority			−157	−37.5
Turnout			c. 210	c. 840.0
Registered electors			c. 25
	Tory hold
	Tory hold

The votes for Warre, Cave and Taddy were rejected by the mayor.

General election 1831: Hastings ^{[9] [22]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	John Ashley Warre	Unopposed
	Whig	Frederick North	Unopposed
Registered electors			c. 25
	Whig gain from Tory
	Whig gain from Tory

General election 1832: Hastings ^{[9] [23]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	Frederick North	356	44.1
	Whig	John Ashley Warre	239	29.6
	Radical	Howard Elphinstone	212	26.3
Majority			27	3.3
Turnout			472	82.2
Registered electors			574
	Whig hold
	Whig hold

General election 1835: Hastings ^{[9] [23]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Frederick North	374	38.1	−35.6
	Radical	Howard Elphinstone	291	29.7	+3.4
	Conservative	Joseph Planta	159	16.2	New
	Conservative	Musgrave Brisco	157	16.0	New
Turnout			558	82.9	+0.7
Registered electors			673
Majority			83	8.4	+5.1
	Whig hold		Swing	−19.5
Majority			132	13.5	N/A
	Radical gain from Whig		Swing	+19.5

General election 1837: Hastings ^{[9] [23]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Joseph Planta	401	36.6	+20.4
	Radical	Robert Hollond	382	34.9	+5.2
	Conservative	Musgrave Brisco	312	28.5	+12.5
Turnout			776	84.0	+1.1
Registered electors			924
Majority			19	1.7	N/A
	Conservative gain from Whig		Swing	+8.9
Majority			70	6.4	−7.1
	Radical hold		Swing	−5.6

Elections in the 1840s

General election 1841: Hastings ^{[23] [9]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Radical	Robert Hollond	Unopposed
	Conservative	Joseph Planta	Unopposed
Registered electors			952
	Radical hold
	Conservative hold

Planta resigned by accepting the office of Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds, causing a by-election.

By-election, 30 March 1844: Hastings ^{[23] [9]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Musgrave Brisco	513	74.7	N/A
	Radical	Robert Ross Rowan Moore	174	25.3	N/A
Majority			339	49.4	N/A
Turnout			687	79.9	N/A
Registered electors			860
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A

General election 1847: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Radical	Robert Hollond	423	27.0	N/A
	Conservative	Musgrave Brisco	407	26.0	N/A
	Whig	John Ashley Warre	387	24.7	N/A
	Conservative	Patrick Francis Robertson	348	22.2	N/A
	Independent Liberal	William Downing Bruce [24]	0	0.0	New
Turnout			783 (est)	86.1 (est)	N/A
Registered electors			909
Majority			16	1.0	N/A
	Radical hold		Swing	N/A
Majority			20	1.3	N/A
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1850s

General election 1852: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Patrick Francis Robertson	501	27.1	+4.9
	Conservative	Musgrave Brisco	487	26.3	+0.3
	Whig	John Ashley Warre	477	25.8	+1.1
	Radical	John Locke [25] [26]	386	20.9	−6.1
Majority			10	0.5	−0.8
Turnout			926 (est)	84.9 (est)	−1.2
Registered electors			1,090
	Conservative hold		Swing	+4.0
	Conservative gain from Radical		Swing	+1.7

Brisco resigned by accepting the office of Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds, causing a by-election.

By-election, 10 May 1854: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Frederick North	Unopposed
	Whig gain from Conservative

General election 1857: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Frederick North	Unopposed
	Conservative	Patrick Francis Robertson	Unopposed
Registered electors			1,199
	Whig gain from Conservative
	Conservative hold

General election 1859: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Frederick North	613	33.5	N/A
	Liberal	Harry Vane	557	30.5	N/A
	Conservative	Patrick Francis Robertson	429	23.5	N/A
	Conservative	William Drew Lucas-Shadwell [27]	230	12.6	N/A
Majority			128	7.0	N/A
Turnout			915 (est)	74.0 (est)	N/A
Registered electors			1,235
	Liberal hold		Swing	N/A
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1860s

Powlett succeeded to the peerage, becoming Duke of Cleveland, and causing a by-election.

By-election, 6 October 1864: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	George Waldegrave-Leslie	645	51.1	−12.9
	Conservative	Patrick Francis Robertson	616	48.9	+12.8
Majority			29	2.2	−4.8
Turnout			1,261	78.2	+4.2
Registered electors			1,613
	Liberal hold		Swing	−12.9

General election 1865: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	George Waldegrave-Leslie	746	26.6	−3.9
	Conservative	Patrick Francis Robertson	737	26.3	+2.8
	Liberal	Frederick North	728	26.0	−7.5
	Conservative	John Eldon Gorst	591	21.1	+8.5
Turnout			1,401 (est)	74.9 (est)	+0.9
Registered electors			1,871
Majority			9	0.3	−6.7
	Liberal hold		Swing	−4.8
Majority			9	0.3	N/A
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing	+4.3

Brassey

General election 1868: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Brassey	1,508	31.5	+4.9
	Liberal	Frederick North	1,446	30.2	+4.2
	Conservative	Somerset Gough-Calthorpe [28]	967	20.2	−6.1
	Conservative	Clement Arthur Thurston	873	18.2	−2.9
Majority			479	10.0	+9.7
Turnout			2,397 (est)	85.6 (est)	+10.7
Registered electors			2,801
	Liberal hold		Swing	+3.9
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing	+5.2

North's death caused a by-election.

By-election, 18 November 1869: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Ughtred Kay-Shuttleworth	1,218	52.9	−8.8
	Conservative	Patrick Francis Robertson	1,084	47.1	+8.7
Majority			134	5.8	−4.2
Turnout			2,302	82.2	−3.4
Registered electors			2,801
	Liberal hold		Swing	−8.8

Elections in the 1870s

General election 1874: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Brassey	1,721	31.8	+0.3
	Liberal	Ughtred Kay-Shuttleworth	1,495	27.7	−2.5
	Conservative	Patrick Francis Robertson	1,244	23.0	+2.8
	Conservative	Richard Nicholson [29]	945	17.5	−0.7
Majority			251	4.7	−5.3
Turnout			2,703 (est)	87.7 (est)	+2.1
Registered electors			3,082
	Liberal hold		Swing	+0.5
	Liberal hold		Swing	−2.7

Elections in the 1880s

General election 1880: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Charles James Murray	1,873	34.6	−5.9
	Liberal	Thomas Brassey	1,838	34.0	+2.2
	Liberal	Ughtred Kay-Shuttleworth	1,702	31.4	+3.7
Majority			35	0.6	N/A
Turnout			3,711 (est)	95.0 (est)	+7.3
Registered electors			3,905
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing	−3.3
	Liberal hold		Swing	+2.6

Brassey was appointed a Civil Lord of the Admiralty, requiring a by-election.

By-election, 10 May 1880: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Brassey	Unopposed
	Liberal hold

Murray resigned, causing a by-election.

By-election, 2 July 1883: Hastings ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Henry Bret Ince	2,138	50.4	−15.0
	Conservative	John Henry Boyer Warner [30]	2,101	49.6	+15.0
Majority			37	0.8	N/A
Turnout			4,239	89.4	−5.6 (est)
Registered electors			4,743
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing

General election 1885: Hastings ^{[31] [32] [33]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Brassey	2,712	51.5	−13.9
	Conservative	Wilson Noble	2,550	48.5	+13.9
Majority			162	3.0	N/A
Turnout			5,262	92.8	−2.2 (est)
Registered electors			5,672
	Liberal hold		Swing	−13.9

General election 1886: Hastings ^{[31] [32]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Wilson Noble	2,765	55.4	+6.9
	Liberal	Thomas Seymour Brand	2,230	44.6	-6.9
Majority			535	10.8	N/A
Turnout			4,995	88.1	-4.7
Registered electors			5,672
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing	+6.9

Elections in the 1890s

Hemphill

General election 1892: Hastings ^{[31] [32]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Wilson Noble	3,077	53.9	−1.5
	Liberal	Charles Hemphill	2,628	46.1	+1.5
Majority			449	7.8	−3.0
Turnout			5,705	86.8	−1.3
Registered electors			6,576
	Conservative hold		Swing	+1.5

Lucas-Shadwell

General election 1895: Hastings ^{[31] [32] [34]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Lucas-Shadwell	3,205	52.8	-1.1
	Liberal	Cecil Henry Blundell Ince	2,863	47.2	+1.1
Majority			342	5.6	-2.2
Turnout			6,068	83.2	−3.6
Registered electors			7,292
	Conservative hold		Swing	-1.1

Elections in the 1900s

Thomas

General election 1900: Hastings ^{[31] [32] [34]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Freeman Freeman-Thomas	3,399	51.6	+4.4
	Conservative	Edward Boyle	3,191	48.4	−4.4
Majority			208	3.2	N/A
Turnout			6,590	80.9	−2.3
Registered electors			8,142
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing	+4.4

General election 1906: Hastings ^{[31] [32]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Harvey du Cros	4,348	52.5	+4.1
	Liberal	Freeman Freeman-Thomas	3,935	47.5	−4.1
Majority			413	5.0	N/A
Turnout			8,283	94.6	+13.7
Registered electors			8,758
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing	+4.1

Du Cros

1908 Hastings by-election ^[32]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Arthur Du Cros	4,495	56.4	+3.9
	Liberal	Robert Harcourt	3,477	43.6	−3.9
Majority			1,018	12.8	+7.8
Turnout			7,972	91.6	−3.0
Registered electors			8,707
	Conservative hold		Swing	+3.9

Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Hastings ^{[31] [35]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Arthur Du Cros	4,634	54.7	+1.7
	Liberal	Robert Tweedy-Smith	3,833	45.3	-1.7
Majority			801	9.4	-3.4
Turnout			8,467	93.8	+2.2
	Conservative hold		Swing	-1.7

General election December 1910: Hastings ^{[31] [35]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Arthur Du Cros	4,397	55.6	+0.9
	Liberal	Arthur Frederick William Johnson	3,515	44.4	-0.9
Majority			882	11.2	+1.8
Turnout			7,912	87.6	-6.2
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1914/15

Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;

• Unionist: Arthur Du Cros
• Liberal: Cecil Patrick Black

General election 1918: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
C	Unionist	Laurance Lyon	11,210	75.9	+20.3
	Labour	Joseph George Butler	3,556	24.1	New
Majority			7,654	51.8	+40.6
Turnout			14,766	59.2	−28.4
Registered electors			24,958
	Unionist hold		Swing
Cindicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

Elections in the 1920s

Lord Percy

1921 Hastings by-election ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Coalition Unionist	Eustace Percy	11,685	54.7	−21.2
	Labour	Richard Davies	5,437	25.5	+1.4
	Liberal	Arthur Blackman	4,240	19.8	New
Majority			6,248	29.2	−22.6
Turnout			21,362	78.0	+18.8
Registered electors			27,386
	Unionist hold		Swing	−11.3

General election 1922: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	Eustace Percy	13,991	68.3	−7.6
	Labour	Richard Davies	6,492	31.7	+7.6
Majority			7,499	36.6	−15.2
Turnout			20,483	71.2	+12.0
Registered electors			28,785
	Unionist hold		Swing	−7.6

Maria Gordon

1923 UK general election: Hastings ^[37]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	Eustace Percy	11,914	52.6	−15.7
	Liberal	Maria Gordon	5,876	25.9	New
	Labour	Richard Davies	4,859	21.5	−10.2
Majority			6,038	26.7	−9.9
Turnout			22,649	76.4	+5.2
Registered electors			29,662
	Unionist hold		Swing	−2.8

General election 1924: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	Eustace Percy	15,217	71.4	+18.8
	Labour	Muriel Matters	6,082	28.6	+7.1
Majority			9,135	42.8	+16.1
Turnout			21,299	70.5	−5.9
Registered electors			30,195
	Unionist hold		Swing	+5.9

General election 1929: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	Eustace Percy	15,928	52.3	−19.1
	Liberal	Thomas Austen Edwin Spearing	8,004	26.3	New
	Labour	Basil Noble	6,516	21.4	−7.2
Majority			7,924	26.0	−16.8
Turnout			30,448	73.4	+2.9
Registered electors			41,503
	Unionist hold		Swing	−6.0

Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Eustace Percy	22,640	70.3	+18.0
	Labour	Irene Goddard	4,983	15.5	-5.9
	Liberal	Thomas Austen Edwin Spearing	4,561	14.2	-12.1
Majority			17,657	54.8	+28.8
Turnout			32,184	73.8	+0.4
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1935: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Eustace Percy	20,905	69.0	-1.3
	Labour	William Wate Wood	9,404	31.0	+15.5
Majority			11,501	38.0	-16.8
Turnout			30,309	66.5	-7.3
	Conservative hold		Swing

1937 Hastings by-election ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Maurice Hely-Hutchinson	18,428	62.1	-6.9
	Labour	William Wate Wood	11,244	37.9	+6.9
Majority			7,184	24.2	-13.8
Turnout			29,672	65.3	-1.2
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1939/40

Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the Autumn of 1939, the following candidates had been selected;

• Conservative: Maurice Hely-Hutchinson
• Labour: William Wate Wood ^[38]

Elections in the 1940s

General election 1945: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Neill Cooper-Key	14,105	51.8	-17.2
	Labour	Lewis Gassman	10,580	38.8	+7.8
	Independent Progressive	Sydney Muller Parkman	2,564	9.4	New
Majority			3,525	13.0	-25.0
Turnout			27,249	74.9	+8.4
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Neill Cooper-Key	30,035	52.92
	Labour	Lewis Cohen	17,603	31.01
	Liberal	Peter Leslie Martin Hurd	9,122	16.07	New
Majority			12,432	21.91
Turnout			56,760	82.14
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1951: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Neill Cooper-Key	34,495	63.74
	Labour	Catherine Williamson	19,621	36.26
Majority			14,874	27.48
Turnout			54,116	77.36
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1955: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Neill Cooper-Key	20,469	55.77
	Labour	Reginald George White	11,933	32.51
	Liberal	John Montgomerie	4,303	11.72	New
Majority			8,536	23.26
Turnout			36,705	75.69
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1959: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Neill Cooper-Key	22,458	62.32
	Labour	James Paterson Bryant	13,576	37.68
Majority			8,882	24.64
Turnout			36,034	74.19
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Neill Cooper-Key	16,902	44.55
	Labour	Harry Arthur Fountain	11,324	29.85
	Liberal	Jeremy John Arnold	9,716	25.61	New
Majority			5,578	14.70
Turnout			37,942	76.34
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1966: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Neill Cooper-Key	15,324	40.27
	Labour	Cyril Bernard Kissen	12,984	34.12
	Liberal	Jeremy John Arnold	9,744	25.61
Majority			2,340	6.15
Turnout			38,052	76.41
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Kenneth Warren	20,364	50.61
	Labour	Cyril Bernard Kissen	13,549	33.67
	Liberal	Pamela Maud Shields	6,324	15.72
Majority			6,815	16.94
Turnout			40,507	72.77
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election February 1974: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Kenneth Warren	20,075	44.85
	Labour	Michael Foster	12,992	29.02
	Liberal	MG Cass	11,690	26.12
Majority			7,083	15.83
Turnout			44,757	79.06
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election October 1974: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Kenneth Warren	18,337	44.93
	Labour	Michael Foster	13,685	33.53
	Liberal	A Leggett	8,793	21.54
Majority			4,652	11.40
Turnout			40,815	71.58
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1979: Hastings ^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Kenneth Warren	21,311	51.53
	Labour	Michael Foster	12,392	29.96
	Liberal	A Leggett	6,474	15.65
	Independent	GL McNally	839	2.03	New
	National Front	HJ Anderson	344	0.83	New
Majority			8,919	21.56
Turnout			41,360	71.68
	Conservative hold		Swing

References

1. "Representation of the People Act 1948: Schedule 1", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, 1948 c. 65 (sch.1), retrieved 23 July 2023
2. "The Parliamentary Constituencies (Sussex) Order 1955. SI 1955/175". Statutory Instruments 1955. Part II. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office. 1956. pp. 2171–2174.
3. "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
4. "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
5. "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
6. Stanley T. Bindoff, The House of Commons: 1509–1558, vol. 4, p. 9
7. Cobbett's Parliamentary History records the second member for Hastings in the 1604 Parliament as being James Lasher, but this seems to be an error; Lasher is mentioned only in the Commons Journal from 1621 while Carew was certainly a member in 1604, and other sources name his constituency as Hastings
8. Townshend was also elected for Cambridge University, which he chose to represent, and never sat for Hastings
9. Stooks Smith, Henry (1845). The Parliaments of England, from 1st George I., to the Present Time. Vol II: Oxfordshire to Wales Inclusive. London: Simpkin, Marshall, & Co. pp. 80–82.
10. Gash, Norman (2013). Politics in the Age of Peel: A Study in the Technique of Parliamentary Representation, 1830–1850. Faber & Faber. ISBN   9780571302901 . Retrieved 13 May 2018.
11. Jenkins, Terry. "WARRE, John Ashley (1787–1860), of West Newton Manor, nr. Taunton, Som.; West Cliff House, Ramsgate, Kent and 71 Belgrave Square, Mdx". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
12. The Spectator, Volume 7. F. C. Westley. 1834. p. 316. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
13. "About Marianne North". Botanical Art & Artists. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
14. Tipperary Free Press. 27 May 1835. p. 3 https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000789/18350527/015/0003 . Retrieved 13 May 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.{{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
15. "Arguments for the Ballot" . The Examiner. 23 December 1832. pp. 7–8. Retrieved 13 May 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
16. Fisher, David R. (2009). "Hastings". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
17. "The Approaching Revolution". The Royal lady's magazine, and archives of the court of St. James's. Horticultural Journal. 1831. p. 283. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
18. Dod, Charles Roger; Dod, Robert Phipps (1847). Dod's Parliamentary Companion, Volume 15. Dod's Parliamentary Companion. p. 176. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
19. "Elections in Kent" . Kentish Gazette. 1 August 1837. p. 2. Retrieved 13 May 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
20. "Hastings" . Dover Telegraph and Cinque Ports General Advertiser. 15 July 1837. p. 8. Retrieved 13 May 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
21. "Morning Post" . 5 July 1837. pp. 2–3. Retrieved 6 November 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
22. Fisher, David R. "Hastings". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
23. Craig, F. W. S., ed. (1977). British Parliamentary Election Results 1832–1885 (1st ed.). London: Macmillan Press. ISBN   978-1-349-02349-3.
24. "Electioneering Intelligence" . Leicester Journal. 16 July 1847. p. 4. Retrieved 6 November 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
25. "Hastings" . Brighton Gazette. 15 July 1852. p. 6. Retrieved 13 May 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
26. Hamilton, John Andrew (1893). "Locke, John (1805–1880)"  . In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography . Vol. 34. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
27. "East Sussex Election" . Sussex Agricultural Express. 23 April 1859. p. 4. Retrieved 13 May 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
28. "Lieutenant General The Honourable Somerset Gough Calthorpe". Birmingham Images. Library of Birmingham. 1897. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
29. "The General Election" . London Evening Standard . 30 January 1874. pp. 2–3. Retrieved 31 December 2017– via British Newspaper Archive.
30. "Election News" . Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette . 28 June 1883. p. 5. Retrieved 29 November 2017– via British Newspaper Archive.
31. British Parliamentary Election Results 1885–1918, FWS Craig
32. The Liberal Year Book, 1907
33. Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1886
34. Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1901
35. Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1916
36. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918–1949, FWS Craig
37. FWS Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1918–1949; Political Reference Publications, Glasgow 1949
38. Report of the Annual Conference of the Labour Party, 1939

• Robert Beatson, A Chronological Register of Both Houses of Parliament (London: Longman, Hurst, Res & Orme, 1807)
• D Brunton & D H Pennington, Members of the Long Parliament (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1954)
• Cobbett's Parliamentary history of England, from the Norman Conquest in 1066 to the year 1803 (London: Thomas Hansard, 1808)
• F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1832–1885 (2nd edition, Aldershot: Parliamentary Research Services, 1989)
• J E Neale, The Elizabethan House of Commons (London: Jonathan Cape, 1949)
• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "H" (part 2)