Wealden (UK Parliament constituency)
Coordinates: 50°59′56″N 0°12′43″E / 50.999°N 0.212°E
Wealden | |
---|---|
County constituency for the House of Commons | |
Boundary of Wealden in East Sussex. | |
Location of East Sussex within England. | |
County | East Sussex |
Electorate | 77,536 (December 2010) |
Current constituency | |
Created | 1983 |
Member of parliament | Nus Ghani (Conservative) |
Created from | East Grinstead, Lewes and Rye[1] |
Overlaps | |
European Parliament constituency | South East England |
Wealden is a constituency[n 1] represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Nus Ghani, a Conservative. Ghani was the first Muslim woman to be elected as a Conservative member of Parliament.
History
This seat was created in the third periodic review of constituencies in 1983, from a mixture of the previous Mid and Northern divisions of the county (also known as Lewes and East Grinstead).
- Political history
The seat's history is that of a safe Conservative seat. Before the 2015 election, the Liberal Democrats including their two predecessor parties have so far always presented the main opposition candidate, but they then fell to fourth place. The best result for the Labour Party was in 2017, however was 39% below the share of the vote taken by the winner. Closest in percentage majority was the election of 1997 with a majority of 24% of the vote, still more than a marginal gap separated the two main local parties.
- Prominent frontbenchers
Locally born Charles Hendry served as a Minister of State in the Department of Energy and Climate Change from 2010-2012 following two years in the shadow role in opposition.
Boundaries
1983-1997: The District of Wealden wards of Buxted, Chiddingly and East Hoathly, Crowborough East, Crowborough North, Crowborough West, Danehill, Fletching, Forest Row, Framfield, Frant, Hailsham Central and North, Hailsham East, Hailsham South and West, Hartfield, Heathfield, Hellingly, Horam, Maresfield, Mayfield, Rotherfield, Uckfield, Wadhurst, Waldron, and Withyam.
1997-2010: The District of Wealden wards of Buxted, Chiddingly and East Hoathly, Crowborough East, Crowborough North, Crowborough St John's, Crowborough West, Danehill, Fletching, Forest Row, Framfield, Frant, Hailsham Central and North, Hailsham East, Hailsham South and West, Hartfield, Heathfield, Hellingly, Horam, Maresfield, Mayfield, Rotherfield, Uckfield, Wadhurst, Waldron, and Withyam.
2010-present: The District of Wealden wards of Buxted and Maresfield, Chiddingly and East Hoathly, Crowborough East, Crowborough Jarvis Brook, Crowborough North, Crowborough St John's, Crowborough West, Danehill/Fletching/Nutley, Forest Row, Framfield, Frant/Withyham, Hailsham Central and North, Hailsham East, Hailsham South and West, Hartfield, Hellingly, Horam, Mayfield, Rotherfield, Uckfield Central, Uckfield New Town, Uckfield North, Uckfield Ridgewood, and Wadhurst.
Approximately half of the population in the constituency lives in the area’s three main towns: Crowborough, Hailsham and Uckfield. The rest of the seat is predominantly rural and has many small towns, villages and hamlets. The Wealden landscape is varied, ranging from the Ashdown Forest in the north to the South Downs and the coastal part is included in seats to the south.
The constituency covers much of the Wealden district of East Sussex. However, some of the district in the south falls into the constituencies of Lewes, Bexhill and Battle and Eastbourne.
Constituency profile
A considerable portion of the population is retired or work in London, Brighton or other regional employment bases at a managerial or advanced professional level. Workless claimants who were registered jobseekers were in November 2012 significantly lower than the national average of 3.8%, at 1.5% of the population based on a statistical compilation by The Guardian.[2]
Members of Parliament
Election | Member[3] | Party | |
---|---|---|---|
1983 | Sir Geoffrey Johnson Smith | Conservative | |
2001 | Charles Hendry | Conservative | |
2015 | Nus Ghani | Conservative |
Elections
Elections in the 2010s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Nus Ghani | 37,027 | 61.2 | +4.2 | |
Labour | Angela Smith | 13,399 | 22.2 | +11.4 | |
Liberal Democrat | Chris Bowers | 6,281 | 10.4 | +1.3 | |
Green | Colin Stocks | 1,959 | 3.2 | -3.1 | |
UKIP | Nicola Burton | 1,798 | 3.0 | -13.8 | |
Majority | 23,268 | 39.0 | -1.3 | ||
Turnout | 60,464 | 74.3 | +3.3 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | -3.6 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Nus Ghani | 32,508 | 57.0 | +0.5 | |
UKIP | Peter Griffiths[6] | 9,541 | 16.7 | +10.7 | |
Labour | Solomon Curtis[7] | 6,165 | 10.8 | +1.2 | |
Liberal Democrat | Giles Goodall | 5,180 | 9.1 | −16.5 | |
Green | Mark Smith [8] | 3,623 | 6.4 | +3.8 | |
Majority | 22,967 | 40.3 | |||
Turnout | 57,017 | 71.0 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | −5.8 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Charles Hendry | 31,090 | 56.6 | +6.1 | |
Liberal Democrat | Chris Bowers | 13,911 | 25.3 | +0.6 | |
Labour | Lorna Blackmore | 5,266 | 9.6 | −7.1 | |
UKIP | Dan Docker | 3,319 | 6.0 | +2.2 | |
Green | David Jonas | 1,383 | 2.5 | -1.8 | |
Majority | 17,179 | 31.3 | |||
Turnout | 54,969 | 71.8 | +5.5 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +2.8% |
Elections in the 2000s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Charles Hendry | 28,975 | 52.1 | +2.3 | |
Liberal Democrat | Christopher Wigley | 13,054 | 23.5 | −0.2 | |
Labour | Dudley Rose | 9,360 | 16.8 | −3.5 | |
Green | Julian Salmon | 2,150 | 3.9 | +1.5 | |
UKIP | Keith Riddle | 2,114 | 3.8 | +0.9 | |
Majority | 15,921 | 28.6 | |||
Turnout | 55,653 | 67.7 | 4.2 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +1.3 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Charles Hendry | 26,279 | 49.8 | +0.0 | |
Liberal Democrat | Steve Murphy | 12,507 | 23.7 | −2.0 | |
Labour | Kathy Fordham | 10,705 | 20.3 | +3.1 | |
UKIP | Keith Riddle | 1,538 | 2.9 | +2.0 | |
Green | Julian Salmon | 1,273 | 2.4 | N/A | |
Pensioner Coalition | Cyril Thornton | 453 | 0.9 | N/A | |
Majority | 13,772 | 26.1 | |||
Turnout | 52,756 | 63.5 | 10.2 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Elections in the 1990s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Geoffrey Johnson Smith | 29,417 | 49.8 | −12.0 | |
Liberal Democrat | Michael Skinner | 15,213 | 25.7 | −1.3 | |
Labour | Nicholas Levine | 10,185 | 17.2 | +8.0 | |
Referendum | Barry Taplin | 3,527 | 6.0 | N/A | |
UKIP | Margaret English | 569 | 0.9 | N/A | |
Natural Law | Paul Cragg | 188 | 0.3 | +0.0 | |
Majority | 14,204 | 24.0 | |||
Turnout | 59,099 | 73.7 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing |
This constituency underwent boundary changes between the 1992 and 1997 general elections and thus change in share of vote is based on a notional calculation.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Geoffrey Johnson Smith | 37,263 | 61.7 | −2.5 | |
Liberal Democrat | Michael Skinner | 16,332 | 27.1 | −0.4 | |
Labour | Steve Billcliffe | 5,579 | 9.2 | +0.9 | |
Green | Ian Guy-Moore | 1,002 | 1.7 | N/A | |
Natural Law | Roger Graham | 182 | 0.3 | N/A | |
Majority | 20,931 | 34.6 | −2.1 | ||
Turnout | 60,358 | 81.0 | +6.0 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | −1.1 |
Elections in the 1980s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Geoffrey Johnson Smith | 35,154 | 64.2 | 0.0 | |
Social Democratic | David Sinclair | 15,044 | 27.5 | −2.1 | |
Labour | Charles Ward | 4,563 | 8.3 | +2.1 | |
Majority | 20,110 | 36.7 | |||
Turnout | 54,761 | 75.0 | +3.2 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Geoffrey Johnson Smith | 31,926 | 64.2 | N/A | |
Social Democratic | David Pace | 14,741 | 29.6 | N/A | |
Labour | Patricia Knight | 3,060 | 6.2 | N/A | |
Majority | 17,185 | 34.6 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 49,727 | 71.8 | N/A | ||
Conservative win (new seat) |
See also
Notes and references
- Notes
- ↑ A county constituency (for the purposes of election expenses and type of returning officer)
- References
- ↑ "'Wealden', June 1983 up to May 1997". ElectionWeb Project. Cognitive Computing Limited. Retrieved 14 March 2016.
- ↑ Unemployment claimants by constituency The Guardian
- ↑ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "W" (part 2)
- ↑ "Wealden parliamentary constituency". BBC News.
- ↑ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
- ↑ "UK Polling Report". ukpollingreport.co.uk.
- ↑ "Labour party selects teenager from Hastings as their candidate for MP - Crowborough Life". 23 December 2014.
- ↑ "Wealden Green Party - Home". wealden.greenparty.org.uk.
- ↑ "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
- ↑ "Politics Resources". Election 1992. Politics Resources. 9 April 1992. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
Sources
- Election result, 2017 (BBC)
- Election result, 2010 (BBC)
- Election result, 2005 (BBC)
- Election results, 1997 - 2001 (BBC)
- Election results, 1997 - 2001 (Election Demon)
- Election results, 1983 - 1992 (Election Demon)
- Election results, 1992 - 2005 (Guardian)