Opinion polling for the 1979 United Kingdom general election

Last updated July 29, 2024

In the run-up to the 1979 general election, various organisations carried out opinion polling to gauge voting intention. Results of such polls are displayed in this article. The date range for these opinion polls are from the October general election until 3 May 1979.

Graphical summaries

The chart below depicts opinion polls conducted for the 1979 United Kingdom general election.

National Poll Results

All data is from UK Polling Report.^[1]

1979

Survey end date	Pollster	Client	Lab	Con	Lib	Lead
Survey end date	Pollster	Client				Lead
3 May	1979 general election		36.9%	43.9%	13.8%	7%
2 May	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	38.5%	49%	9%	10.5%
2 May	NOP	Daily Mail	39%	46%	12.5%	7%
2 May	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41%	43%	13.5%	2%
2 May	MORI	Evening Standard	37%	45%	15%	8%
1 May	MORI	Daily Express	38.8%	44.4%	13.5%	5.6%
1 May	Marplan	The Sun	38.5%	45%	9%	6.5%
30 Apr	NOP	Daily Mail	43.1%	42.4%	12.2%	0.7%
26 Apr	MORI	Daily Express	41%	44%	12%	3%
25 Apr	Gallup	The Sunday Telegraph	40%	48%	10.5%	8%
25 Apr	Research Srv	The Observer	38%	49.5%	10%	11.5%
25 Apr	Marplan	The Sun	40%	48%	10%	8%
23 Apr	MORI	Daily Express	40%	46%	11%	6%
21 Apr	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41.5%	46.5%	10%	5%
19 Apr	Marplan	The Sun	40%	50%	9%	10%
18 Apr	Gallup	The Sunday Telegraph	42%	47.5%	9%	5.5%
18 Apr	Marplan	The Sun	41%	51%	6%	10%
18 Apr	Research Srv	The Observer	34%	54%	9.5%	20%
17 Apr	MORI	Daily Express	38%	50%	10%	12%
14 Apr	NOP	Daily Mail	42%	48%	8%	6%
11 Apr	Research Srv	The Observer	37%	53%	8%	16%
9 Apr	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	40%	50%	8%	10%
9 Apr	MORI	Daily Express	39%	49%	10%	10%
7 Apr	The Dissolution of the 47th Parliament and campaigning officially begins
4 Apr	Research Srv	The Observer	33.5%	54.5%	9%	21%
3 Apr	NOP	Daily Mail	42%	48%	8%	6%
2 Apr	MORI	Daily Express	38%	51%	10%	13%
29 Mar	MORI	Thames	42%	51%	5%	9%
29 Mar	Liverpool Edge Hill by-election
28 Mar	The vote of no confidence in the Callaghan ministry passes^[2]
28 Mar	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	40.5%	47.5%	9%	7%
12 Mar	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	37%	51.5%	8.5%	14.5%
5 Mar	MORI	N/A	39%	52%	7%	13%
1 Mar	Knutsford and Clitheroe by-elections
14 Feb	The Winter of Discontent ends following negotiations with the TUC ^[3]
12 Feb	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	33%	53%	11%	20%
8 Feb	NOP	N/A	40.7%	49%	7.4%	8.3%
1 Feb	MORI	N/A	36%	55%	6%	19%
15 Jan	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41.5%	49%	6%	7.5%
4 Jan	NOP	N/A	49.1%	42.5%	5.7%	6.6%

1978

Survey end date	Pollster	Client	Lab	Con	Lib	Lead
Survey end date	Pollster	Client				Lead
14 Dec	The Callaghan ministry survives a vote of no confidence^[4]
11 Dec	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	42.5%	48%	6%	5.5%
7 Dec	NOP	N/A	47.9%	44.7%	4.6%	3.2%
13 Nov	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	48%	43%	6.5%	5%
9 Nov	NOP	N/A	46.8%	44.8%	6.2%	2%
8 Nov	MORI	N/A	46%	47%	5%	1%
26 Oct	Pontefract and Castleford & Berwick and East Lothian by-elections
23 Oct	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	47.5%	42%	7.5%	5.5%
12 Oct	NOP	N/A	48.5%	44.2%	4.7%	4.3%
11 Sep	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	42.5%	49.5%	6%	7%
11 Sep	MORI	N/A	42%	48%	8%	6%
7 Sep	The Lib-Lab pact ends^[5]
5 Sep	NOP	N/A	45.8%	48%	4.8%	2.2%
4 Sep	MORI	N/A	45%	47%	5%	2%
14 Aug	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	47.5%	43.5%	6%	4%
14 Aug	MORI	N/A	44%	47%	6%	3%
9 Aug	NOP	N/A	48.5%	42.4%	6.3%	6.1%
17 Jul	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	43%	45%	8.5%	2%
13 Jul	Penistone & Manchester Moss Side by-elections
11 Jul	MORI	N/A	41%	49%	6%	8%
5 Jul	NOP	N/A	44.4%	46.5%	6.3%	2.1%
30 Jun	MORI	N/A	42%	48%	6%	6%
14 Jun	NOP	N/A	42.3%	49.1%	6.3%	6.8%
13 Jun	MORI	N/A	45%	46%	6%	1%
12 Jun	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	45.5%	45.5%	6%	Tie
31 May	Hamilton by-election
24 May	MORI	N/A	46%	45%	6%	1%
15 May	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	43.5%	43.5%	8.5%	Tie
9 May	NOP	N/A	48%	43.1%	7%	4.9%
2–4 May	1978 local elections ^[6]
27 Apr	Wycombe & Epsom and Ewell by-elections
20 Apr	Lambeth Central by-election
17 Apr	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	43.5%	45.5%	7.5%	2%
13 Apr	MORI	N/A	44%	46%	7%	2%
13 Apr	Glasgow Garscadden by-election
12 Apr	NOP	N/A	44.5%	46.2%	6.6%	1.7%
20 Mar	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41%	48%	8%	7%
8 Mar	NOP	N/A	45.6%	44.6%	7.3%	1%
2 Mar	Ilford North by election
15 Feb	NOP	N/A	44.6%	45.3%	7.1%	0.7%
13 Feb	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	39%	48%	9%	9%
18 Jan	NOP		45.5%	44%	7.5%	1.5%
16 Jan	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	43.5%	43.5%	8.5%	Tie

1977

Survey end date	Pollster	Client	Lab	Con	Lib	Lead
Survey end date	Pollster	Client				Lead
14 Dec	NOP	N/A	48.8%	40.8%	7%	8%
12 Dec	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	44.5%	44%	8%	0.5%
7 Dec	NOP	N/A	44.1%	44.6%	7.5%	0.5%
30 Nov	NOP	N/A	47.5%	43.2%	6.3%	4.3%
24 Nov	Bournemouth East by election
23 Nov	NOP	N/A	44.3%	46.7%	6.2%	2.4%
16 Nov	NOP	N/A	48.5%	42.5%	6.2%	6%
14 Nov	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	42%	45.5%	8.5%	3.5%
9 Nov	NOP	N/A	44.1%	45.5%	7%	1.4%
26 Oct	NOP	N/A	43%	46.7%	6.9%	3.7%
26 Oct	MORI	N/A	44%	45%	7%	1%
24 Oct	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	45%	45%	8%	Tie
19 Oct	NOP	N/A	45.8%	44.1%	7.3%	1.7%
22 Sep	MORI	N/A	42%	49%	5%	7%
14 Sep	NOP	N/A	41.8%	48%	7.3%	6.2%
12 Sep	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41%	45.5%	8.5%	4.5%
18 Aug	Birmingham Ladywood by election
15 Aug	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	37.5%	48.5%	9%	11%
10 Aug	NOP	N/A	38.2%	51.3%	7.1%	13.1%
18 Jul	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	34.5%	49%	10.5%	14.5%
13 Jul	NOP	N/A	35.1%	53.1%	8.4%	18%
7 Jul	Saffron Walden by election
22 Jun	NOP	N/A	37.1%	49.1%	10.8%	12%
13 Jun	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	37%	47.5%	10.5%	10.5%
16 May	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	33%	53.5%	8.5%	20.5%
11 May	NOP	N/A	36.9%	52.9%	7.2%	16%
3–18 May	1977 local elections ^[7]^[8]^[9]
2 May	NOP	N/A	41%	48.3%	6.6%	7.3%
28 Apr	Grimsby & Ashfield by-elections
20 Apr	NOP	N/A	38.3%	49.4%	9.1%	11.1%
18 Apr	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	33.5%	49%	11.5%	15.5%
31 Mar	Birmingham Stechford by-election
23 Mar	NOP	N/A	35.7%	50.9%	9.7%	15.2%
23 Mar	The Lib–Lab pact is formed^[10]^[11]
14 Mar	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	33%	49.5%	13%	16.5%
28 Feb	MORI	N/A	38%	47%	12%	9%
24 Feb	City of London and Westminster South by-election
23 Feb	NOP	N/A	37.4%	47.3%	10.9%	9.9%
16 Feb	NOP	N/A	36.1%	50.2%	10%	14.1%
14 Feb	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	33.5%	46%	14%	12.5%
26 Jan	NOP	N/A	36.8%	48.4%	10.2%	11.6%
17 Jan	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	34%	47%	14.5%	13%
2 Jan	NOP	N/A	35.1%	50%	11.2%	14.9%

1976

Survey end date	Pollster	Client	Lab	Con	Lib	Lead
Survey end date	Pollster	Client				Lead
14 Dec	NOP	N/A	38.4%	47.9%	10.6%	9.5%
2 Dec	Cambridge by-election
13 Dec	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	34%	49.5%	11.5%	15.5%
28 Nov	NOP	N/A	31.3%	55.2%	9.4%	23.9%
15 Nov	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	30%	55%	11.5%	25%
7 Nov	NOP	N/A	38.2%	49.3%	9.3%	11.1%
4 Nov	Workington, Walsall North and Newcastle-upon-Tyne Central by-elections
18 Oct	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	36.5%	48%	11.5%	11.5%
17 Oct	NOP	N/A	34.9%	53.4%	8.3%	18.5%
10 Oct	NOP	N/A	35.9%	50.7%	9.5%	14.8%
26 Sep	NOP	N/A	39.6%	45.6%	9.9%	6%
20 Sep	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	42%	42.5%	11%	0.5%
12 Sep	NOP	N/A	40.5%	46.5%	9.1%	6%
22 Aug	NOP	N/A	43.3%	43.9%	9.3%	0.6%
16 Aug	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41%	44%	10%	3%
18 Jul	NOP	N/A	43.5%	43.6%	8.7%	0.1%
15 Jul	Thurrock by-election
12 Jul	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41%	41%	13%	Tie
11 Jul	NOP	N/A	44.1%	42.1%	9.5%	2%
7 Jul	David Steel is elected leader of the Liberal Party ^[12]
24 Jun	Rotherham by-election
14 Jun	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	40.5%	44%	11%	3.5%
10 Jun	NOP	N/A	41.2%	45.8%	8.8%	4.6%
23 May	NOP	N/A	43%	44.7%	8.3%	1.7%
17 May	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41%	44%	10.5%	3%
16 May	NOP	N/A	41.5%	46.5%	8.3%	5%
6 May	1976 local elections ^[13]
28 Apr	NOP	N/A	46.1%	41.7%	8.4%	4.4%
12 Apr	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	46.5%	41%	9%	5.5%
11 Apr	NOP	N/A	44.7%	43.6%	9%	1.1%
9 Apr	MORI	N/A	46%	40%	10%	6%
5 Apr	James Callaghan is elected leader of the Labour Party and becomes Prime Minister ^[14]
19 Mar	MORI	N/A	47%	40%	9%	7%
15 Mar	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41.5%	44%	9.5%	2.5%
14 Mar	NOP	N/A	41.7%	46%	8.8%	4.3%
11 Mar	Wirral & Carshalton by-elections
4 Mar	Coventry North West by-election
16 Feb	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	40.5%	45.5%	10.5%	5%
25 Jan	NOP	N/A	42.8%	42%	11.3%	0.8%
22 Jan	NOP	N/A	40.5%	43.9%	11.4%	3.4%
19 Jan	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	42%	40.5%	14%	1.5%

1975

Survey end date	Pollster	Client	Lab	Con	Lib	Lead
Survey end date	Pollster	Client				Lead
16 Dec	NOP	N/A	38.3%	45.4%	11.7%	7.1%
16 Dec	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41%	40.5%	14%	0.5%
30 Nov	NOP	N/A	37.4%	44.5%	14.9%	7.1%
17 Nov	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	44.5%	39%	12.5%	5.5%
16 Nov	NOP	N/A	41.2%	43.6%	12.7%	2.4%
30 Oct	NOP	N/A	41.5%	43.4%	11.8%	1.9%
20 Oct	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	40.5%	42.5%	13.5%	2%
22 Sep	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41.5%	38.5%	16.5%	3%
7 Sep	NOP	N/A	40.8%	45.7%	10.3%	4.9%
18 Aug	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	42%	40.5%	14%	1.5%
17 Aug	NOP	N/A	40.3%	44.4%	11.6%	4.1%
14 Jul	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	40.5%	43%	12.5%	2.5%
29 Jun	NOP	N/A	37.2%	48.8%	10.4%	11.6%
26 Jun	Woolwich West by-election
16 Jun	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	40.5%	44%	13%	3.5%
5 Jun	The United Kingdom votes "Yes" to staying in the European Community ^[15]
1 Jun	NOP	N/A	43.6%	42%	10.7%	1.6%
19 May	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	39.5%	45.5%	11%	6%
11 May	NOP	N/A	40.2%	42.9%	13%	2.7%
1 May	1975 local elections ^[16]
27 Apr	NOP	N/A	43.5%	42.4%	10.9%	1.1%
14 Apr	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	45%	43%	10%	2%
6 Apr	NOP	N/A	43.3%	44.8%	9.1%	1.5%
17 Mar	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	44%	42%	11%	2%
2 Mar	NOP	N/A	46.4%	40.8%	10.3%	5.6%
17 Feb	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	41%	45%	11%	4%
11 Feb	Margaret Thatcher is elected leader of the Conservative Party ^[17]^[18]
9 Feb	NOP	N/A	46%	38.6%	11.1%	7.4%
2 Feb	NOP	N/A	43.8%	38.1%	14.6%	5.7%
19 Jan	NOP	N/A	47.8%	32.4%	15.9%	15.4%
13 Jan	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	48.5%	34%	13%	14.5%

1974

Survey end date	Pollster	Client	Lab	Con	Lib	Lead
Survey end date	Pollster	Client				Lead
16 Dec	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	47%	33%	16.5%	14%
1 Dec	NOP	N/A	47.7%	38.4%	11.1%	9.3%
18 Nov	Gallup	The Daily Telegraph	46.5%	35%	14.5%	11.5%
27 Oct	NOP	N/A	43.7%	36.6%	15.1%	7.1%
10 Oct	Oct 1974 general election		39.2%	35.8%	18.3%	3.4%

Polling in the nations and regions

Scotland

Date(s) conducted	Pollster	Client	Sample size	Lab	SNP	Con	Lib	SLP	Lead
Date(s) conducted	Pollster	Client	Sample size						Lead
3 May 1979	1979 election		–	41.5%	17.3%	31.4%	9.0%	0.5%	10.1%
3 May 1979^{[lower-alpha 1]}		Scottish Daily Express		44%	18%	30%	6%		14%
30 Apr 1979^{[lower-alpha 1]}	Opinion Research Centre	The Scotsman		42%	15%	34%	8%		8%
25 Apr 1979^{[lower-alpha 1]}	Opinion Research Centre	The Scotsman		42%	16%	33%	9%		9%
24–25 Feb 1979	System Three	Glasgow Herald	1,080	40%	18%	37%	4%	1%	3%
20–22 Feb 1979	MORI	Scottish Daily Express	1,037	44%	21%	32%	2%		12%
12–14 Feb 1979	MORI	LWT Weekend World	1,015	45%	23%	30%	2%		15%
29 Jan – 6 Feb 1979	System Three	Glasgow Herald	1,003	40%	23%	31%	4%	1%	9%
8–20 Jan 1979	System Three	Glasgow Herald	926	45%	20%	31%	2%	2%	14%
Dec 1978	System Three	Glasgow Herald		48%	21%	25%	4%	2%	23%
Nov 1978	System Three	Glasgow Herald		51%	21%	23%	3%	2%	28%
26 Sep – 3 Oct 1978	System Three	Glasgow Herald	972	48%	19%	27%	4%	1%	21%
30 Aug – 8 Sep 1978	System Three	Glasgow Herald	1,000	52%	18%	24%	3%	3%	28%
31 Jul – 9 Aug 1978	System Three	Glasgow Herald	962	48%	18%	30%	4%	0.5%	18%
26 Jun – 5 Jul 1978	System Three	Glasgow Herald	906	47%	22%	26%	4%	1%	21%
25 Apr – 2 May 1978	System Three	Glasgow Herald	1,024	47%	24%	24%	3%	2%	23%
27 Mar – 5 Apr 1978	System Three	Glasgow Herald	1,008	38%	27%	29%	4%	2%	9%
5 Apr 1978	MORI	LWT Weekend World	1,002	41%	27%	30%	3%	1%	11%
6–14 Mar 1978	System Three	Glasgow Herald	1,031	35%	27%	30%	5%	2%	5%
30 Jan – 6 Feb 1978	System Three	Glasgow Herald	994	38%	27%	28%	5%	2%	10%
Jan 1978	System Three	Glasgow Herald		34%	29%	28%	6%	3%	5%
Nov 1977	System Three	Glasgow Herald		35%	30%	27%	5%	3%	5%
24 Oct – 8 Nov 1977	System Three	Glasgow Herald	984	36%	26%	30%	6%	2%	6%
26 Sep – 6 Oct 1977	System Three	Glasgow Herald	971	31%	28%	32%	6%	2%	1%
22 Aug – 2 Sep 1977	System Three	Glasgow Herald	1,045	29%	30%	32%	5%	4%	2%
Jul 1977	System Three	Glasgow Herald		32%	33%	26%	5%	3%	1%
30 May – 7 Jun 1977	System Three	Glasgow Herald	1,019	33%	35%	26%	4%	1%	2%
25 Apr – 4 May 1977	System Three	Glasgow Herald	1,012	28%	31%	31%	6%	2%	Tied
Mar 1977	System Three	Glasgow Herald		27%	36%	27%	5%	3%	9%
26 Feb – 5 Mar 1977	System Three	Glasgow Herald	978	29%	31%	32%	5%	3%	1%
Jan 1977	System Three	Glasgow Herald		28%	33%	29%	6%	4%	4%
10 Oct 1974	October 1974 election		–	36.3%	30.4%	24.7%	8.3%	N/A	5.9%

Notes

1 2 3 Date the poll was published.

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The 2015 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 7 May 2015 to elect 650 Members of Parliament (MPs) to the House of Commons. It was the first of three general elections to be held under the rules of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 and was the last general election to be held before the United Kingdom voted to end its membership of the European Union (EU) in June 2016. Local elections took place in most areas of England on the same day and is to date the most recent general election to coincide with local elections. The governing Conservative Party, led by Prime Minister David Cameron, won an unexpected victory; opinion polls and political commentators had predicted that the results of the election would cause a second consecutive hung parliament whose composition would be similar to the previous Parliament, which was in effect from the previous national election in 2010. However, opinion polls underestimated the Conservatives, as they won 330 of the 650 seats and 36.9 per cent of the votes, giving them a majority of ten seats.

The 2019 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday, 12 December 2019, with 47,567,752 registered voters entitled to vote to elect 650 Members of Parliament (MPs) to the House of Commons. The governing Conservative Party led by the prime minister, Boris Johnson, won a landslide victory with a majority of 80 seats, a net gain of 48, on 43.6 per cent of the popular vote, the highest percentage for any party since the 1979 general election, though with a narrower popular vote margin than that achieved by the Labour Party over the Conservatives at the 1997 general election. This was the second national election to be held in 2019 in the United Kingdom, the first being the 2019 European Parliament election.

In the run up to the 1992 general election, various organisations carried out opinion polling to gauge voting intention in the United Kingdom. Results of such polls are displayed in this article. The date range for these opinion polls are from the election to 8 April.

In the run-up to the 1987 general election, various organisations carried out opinion polling to gauge voting intention. Results of such polls are displayed in this article. The date range for these opinion polls are from the 1983 general election until 10 June 1987.

In the run-up to the 1983 general election, various organisations carried out opinion polling to gauge voting intention. Results of such polls are displayed in this article. The date ranges for these opinion polls are from the 1979 general election until 6 June 1983.

A general election was held in the United Kingdom on Thursday 3 May 1979 and all 71 seats in Scotland were contested.

References

↑ "UK Polling Report". ukpollingreport.co.uk. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
↑ Aikten, Ian (29 March 1979). "Labour fall by one vote". The Guardian .
↑ Jenkins, Peter (15 February 1979). "Pay later deal in Callaghan's survival kit". The Guardian .
↑ Aikten, Ian; Harper, Keith (15 December 1978). "Callaghan home by 10 Votes". The Guardian .
↑ Aikten, Ian (8 September 1978). "Callaghan gambles on finding new Allies". The Guardian .
↑ Jordan, Philip (5 May 1978). "Labour slips in London after gains in North". The Guardian .
↑ Hetherington, Peter (4 May 1977). "Big gains for SNP but Glasgow is split". The Guardian .
↑ Jordan, Philip (6 May 1977). "Massive swing gives Tories the cities". The Guardian .
↑ McHardy, Anne; Wainwright, Martin (19 May 1977). "Shots fired in Ulster poll". The Guardian .
↑ "Joint Statement on the Lib-Lab Pact: Steel and Callaghan – Liberal History". Liberal History. 24 March 1977. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
↑ Aikten, Ian (24 March 1977). "Liberal deal strains Left". The Guardian .
↑ Hoggart, Simon (8 July 1976). "Smith snub victor Steel". The Guardian .
↑ Lewis, James (7 May 1976). "Tories gain – but no landslide". The Guardian .
↑ Aikten, Ian (6 April 1976). "Callaghan puts his trust in the people". The Guardian .
↑ McKie, David (7 June 1975). "Anatomy of a Landslide". The Guardian .
↑ Johnson, Dennis (2 May 1975). "Tories weaken Labour grip". The Guardian .
↑ Aikten, Ian (12 February 1975). "First lady will put Tories right". The Guardian .
↑ Parry, Gareth (12 February 2015). "From the archive, 12 February 1975: Dreamy, says Thatcher, the new chief Tory". The Guardian . Retrieved 16 July 2021.

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[PublishedDate-19] 1 2 3 Date the poll was published.

[1] "UK Polling Report". ukpollingreport.co.uk. Retrieved 16 December 2019.

[2] Aikten, Ian (29 March 1979). "Labour fall by one vote". The Guardian .

[3] Jenkins, Peter (15 February 1979). "Pay later deal in Callaghan's survival kit". The Guardian .

[4] Aikten, Ian; Harper, Keith (15 December 1978). "Callaghan home by 10 Votes". The Guardian .

[5] Aikten, Ian (8 September 1978). "Callaghan gambles on finding new Allies". The Guardian .

[6] Jordan, Philip (5 May 1978). "Labour slips in London after gains in North". The Guardian .

[7] Hetherington, Peter (4 May 1977). "Big gains for SNP but Glasgow is split". The Guardian .

[8] Jordan, Philip (6 May 1977). "Massive swing gives Tories the cities". The Guardian .

[9] McHardy, Anne; Wainwright, Martin (19 May 1977). "Shots fired in Ulster poll". The Guardian .

[10] "Joint Statement on the Lib-Lab Pact: Steel and Callaghan – Liberal History". Liberal History. 24 March 1977. Retrieved 16 July 2021.

[11] Aikten, Ian (24 March 1977). "Liberal deal strains Left". The Guardian .

[12] Hoggart, Simon (8 July 1976). "Smith snub victor Steel". The Guardian .

[13] Lewis, James (7 May 1976). "Tories gain – but no landslide". The Guardian .

[14] Aikten, Ian (6 April 1976). "Callaghan puts his trust in the people". The Guardian .

[15] McKie, David (7 June 1975). "Anatomy of a Landslide". The Guardian .

[16] Johnson, Dennis (2 May 1975). "Tories weaken Labour grip". The Guardian .

[17] Aikten, Ian (12 February 1975). "First lady will put Tories right". The Guardian .

[18] Parry, Gareth (12 February 2015). "From the archive, 12 February 1975: Dreamy, says Thatcher, the new chief Tory". The Guardian . Retrieved 16 July 2021.

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v t e 1979 United Kingdom general election
MPs elected Scotland Wales Opinion polling
Incumbent prime minister: James Callaghan (Labour) Appointed prime minister: Margaret Thatcher (Conservative)
Parties elected to the House of Commons	Conservative (Margaret Thatcher) Labour (James Callaghan) Liberal (David Steel) Ulster Unionist Party (Harry West) Democratic Unionist Party (Ian Paisley) Scottish National Party (William Wolfe) Plaid Cymru (Gwynfor Evans) Social Democratic and Labour Party (Gerry Fitt) United Ulster Unionist Party (Ernest Baird) Ulster Popular Unionist Party (James Kilfedder)
Results by area	England Northern Ireland Scotland Wales
See also	Thorpe affair Labour Isn't Working Winter of Discontent 1979 Scottish devolution referendum 1979 Welsh devolution referendum 1979 vote of no confidence in the Callaghan ministry Assassination of Airey Neave Thatcherism
1979 United Kingdom local elections