Dartford | |
---|---|
County constituency for the House of Commons | |
County | Kent |
Electorate | 74,756 (December 2010) [1] |
Major settlements | Dartford |
Current constituency | |
Created | 1885 |
Member of Parliament | Gareth Johnson ( Conservative) |
Seats | One |
Created from | West Kent |
During its existence contributed to new seat(s) of: |
Bexley (part of)
Erith and Crayford |
Dartford is a constituency [n 1] in Kent represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Gareth Johnson of the Conservative Party. [n 2] It is the constituency that, in the entire UK, has longest been a bellwether: the party of the winning candidate has gone on to form the government at every UK general election since 1964. [2] Candidates for the largest two parties nationally have polled first and second since 1923 in Dartford.
The area of the seat, remaining a combination of urban, suburban and a small rural population, has been gradually reduced through its territory being contributed to new constituencies, their county designation later being changed in 1965 to become part of the new county of Greater London, which adjoins Dartford. These seats are Bexley, created in 1945, and Erith & Crayford, created in 1955.
The seat was created under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885. This Act added a net 18 seats, but its main purpose was to correct the over-representation of minor, often still old boroughs and depopulated county divisions. In their place were created new seats with a larger population. In Kent the Act finally abolished the Sandwich constituency, which sent two MPs until 1885. It also halved the representation of no fewer than four other historic towns. In contrast a seat for Dartford, the North-Western Division of Kent or North West Kent, was created.
In the early 20th century, the Dartford constituency was very much a bellwether. Dartford's results later shifted towards the left: in a by-election in 1938 and then in general elections from 1951 to 1959, a Labour candidate won, going against the national result. Since 1964, however, Dartford has alternated between Labour and the Conservatives in line with the national result, and thus has served as a bellwether again.
This was the first constituency contested by future Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (then Margaret Roberts). She was Conservative candidate at the 1950 and 1951 general elections, unsuccessful on both occasions.
1885–1918: The Sessional Division of Dartford, and part of the Sessional Division of Bromley.
1918–1945: The Urban Districts of Bexley, Dartford, and Erith, and in the Rural District of Dartford the parishes of Crayford, Stone, and Swanscombe.
1945–1955: The Boroughs of Dartford and Erith, and the Urban District of Crayford.
1955–1974: The Borough of Dartford, the Urban District of Swanscombe, and the Rural District of Dartford.
1974–1983: The Borough of Dartford, the Urban District of Swanscombe, and in the Rural District of Dartford the parishes of Darenth, Southfleet, Stone, Sutton-at-Hone, and Wilmington.
1983–1997: The Borough of Dartford, and the District of Sevenoaks wards of Ash-cum-Ridley, Fawkham and Hartley, Horton Kirby, and Longfield.
1997–2010: The Borough of Dartford, and the District of Sevenoaks wards of Fawkham and Hartley, and Horton Kirby.
2010–present: The Borough of Dartford, and the District of Sevenoaks ward of Hartley and Hodsoll Street.
Further to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, enacted by the Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023, from the next general election, due by January 2025, the constituency will be composed of the following (as they existed on 1 December 2020):
The electorate will be reduced to bring it within the permitted range by transferring the District of Sevenoaks ward of Hartley and Hodsoll Street to Tonbridge and the Dartford Borough ward of Wilmington, Sutton-at-Hone & Hawley to Sevenoaks.
As its name suggests, the main settlement in the constituency is the town of Dartford, but it also includes a number of other towns and villages, including Swanscombe, Longfield, Greenhithe and Wilmington. These all add up to create a diverse constituency which covers urban and rural areas.
The population of the constituency currently stands at around 90,000, around 8,000 of whom live in the borough of Sevenoaks, with the remainder living in the borough of Dartford. The constituency is on the border with the London Borough of Bexley, with which at one time it shared an MP.
Health and wealth of its residents is around average for the UK. [4]
Election | Member [5] | Party | |
---|---|---|---|
1885 | Sir William Hart Dyke | Conservative | |
1906 | James Rowlands | Liberal | |
Jan 1910 | William Foot Mitchell | Conservative | |
Dec 1910 | James Rowlands | Liberal | |
1918 | Coalition Liberal | ||
1920 by-election | John Edmund Mills | Labour | |
1922 | George Jarrett | Constitutionalist | |
1923 | John Edmund Mills | Labour | |
1924 | Angus McDonnell | Conservative | |
1929 | John Edmund Mills | Labour | |
1931 | Frank Clarke | Conservative | |
1938 by-election | Jennie Adamson | Labour | |
1945 | constituency split, with half becoming the new Bexley seat | ||
1945 | Norman Dodds | Labour and Co-operative | |
1955 | Sydney Irving | Labour Co-op | |
1970 | Peter Trew | Conservative | |
Feb 1974 | Sydney Irving | Labour Co-op | |
1979 | Bob Dunn | Conservative | |
1997 | Howard Stoate | Labour | |
2010 | Gareth Johnson | Conservative |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Reform UK | Lee Stranders [6] | ||||
Majority | |||||
Turnout |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Gareth Johnson | 34,006 | 62.9 | +5.3 | |
Labour | Sacha Gosine | 14,846 | 27.5 | -5.7 | |
Liberal Democrats | Kyle Marsh | 3,736 | 6.9 | +4.3 | |
Green | Mark Lindop | 1,435 | 2.7 | +1.2 | |
Majority | 19,160 | 35.4 | +11.0 | ||
Turnout | 54,023 | 65.7 | -4.1 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +5.6 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Gareth Johnson | 31,210 | 57.6 | +8.6 | |
Labour | Bachchu Kaini | 18,024 | 33.2 | +7.8 | |
UKIP | Ben Fryer | 2,544 | 4.7 | −15.2 | |
Liberal Democrats | Simon Beard [10] | 1,428 | 2.6 | −0.2 | |
Green | Andrew Blatchford | 807 | 1.5 | −1.0 | |
Independent | Ola Adewunmi | 211 | 0.4 | New | |
Majority | 13,186 | 24.4 | +0.8 | ||
Turnout | 54,224 | 69.8 | +1.4 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +0.4 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Gareth Johnson [13] | 25,670 | 49.0 | +0.2 | |
Labour | Simon Thomson [13] | 13,325 | 25.4 | −2.2 | |
UKIP | Elizabeth Jones | 10,434 | 19.9 | +16.2 | |
Liberal Democrats | Simon Beard | 1,454 | 2.8 | −11.9 | |
Green | Andy Blatchford | 1,324 | 2.5 | New | |
English Democrat | Steve Uncles | 211 | 0.4 | −3.9 | |
Majority | 12,345 | 23.6 | +2.4 | ||
Turnout | 52,418 | 68.4 | +2.7 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +1.2 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Gareth Johnson | 24,428 | 48.8 | +7.6 | |
Labour | John Adams | 13,800 | 27.6 | −15.5 | |
Liberal Democrats | James Willis | 7,361 | 14.7 | +4.6 | |
English Democrat | Gary Rogers | 2,178 | 4.3 | +1.7 | |
UKIP | Richard Palmer | 1,842 | 3.7 | +0.7 | |
Independent | Stephane Tindame | 264 | 0.5 | New | |
Fancy Dress Party | Ernie Crockford | 207 | 0.4 | New | |
Majority | 10,628 | 21.2 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 50,080 | 65.7 | +2.4 | ||
Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | +11.6 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Howard Stoate | 19,909 | 42.6 | −5.4 | |
Conservative | Gareth Johnson | 19,203 | 41.1 | +0.5 | |
Liberal Democrats | Peter Bucklitsch | 5,036 | 10.8 | +2.3 | |
UKIP | Mark Croucher | 1,407 | 3.0 | +0.8 | |
New England | Michael Tibby | 1,224 | 2.6 | New | |
Majority | 706 | 1.5 | -5.9 | ||
Turnout | 46,779 | 63.2 | +1.3 | ||
Labour hold | Swing | −2.9 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Howard Stoate | 21,466 | 48.0 | −0.6 | |
Conservative | Bob Dunn | 18,160 | 40.6 | +0.3 | |
Liberal Democrats | Graham Morgan | 3,781 | 8.5 | −0.9 | |
UKIP | Mark Croucher | 989 | 2.2 | New | |
Fancy Dress Party | Keith Davenport | 344 | 0.8 | +0.3 | |
Majority | 3,306 | 7.4 | -0.9 | ||
Turnout | 44,740 | 61.9 | −12.7 | ||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Howard Stoate | 25,278 | 48.6 | +12.4 | |
Conservative | Bob Dunn | 20,950 | 40.3 | −10.6 | |
Liberal Democrats | Dorothy Webb | 4,872 | 9.4 | −2.8 | |
BNP | Paul McHale | 424 | 0.8 | New | |
Fancy Dress Party | Peter Homden | 287 | 0.5 | +0.1 | |
Christian Democrat | James Pollitt | 228 | 0.4 | New | |
Majority | 4,328 | 8.3 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 52,039 | 74.6 | |||
Labour gain from Conservative | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Bob Dunn | 31,194 | 51.9 | −1.6 | |
Labour | Howard Stoate | 20,880 | 34.7 | +7.2 | |
Liberal Democrats | Peter Bryden | 7,584 | 12.6 | −5.6 | |
Fancy Dress Party | A Munro | 262 | 0.4 | −0.5 | |
Natural Law | Angela Holland | 241 | 0.4 | New | |
Majority | 10,314 | 17.2 | −8.8 | ||
Turnout | 60,161 | 83.1 | +4.1 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | −4.4 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Bob Dunn | 30,685 | 53.5 | +1.9 | |
Labour | Barrie Clarke | 15,756 | 27.5 | +0.7 | |
SDP | Michael Bruce | 10,439 | 18.2 | -2.3 | |
Fancy Dress Party | Keith Davenport | 491 | 0.9 | +0.2 | |
Majority | 14,929 | 26.0 | +1.2 | ||
Turnout | 57,371 | 79.0 | +2.6 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Bob Dunn | 28,199 | 51.6 | ||
Labour | David Townsend | 14,636 | 26.8 | ||
Liberal | John Mills | 11,204 | 20.5 | ||
Fancy Dress Party | A Crockford | 374 | 0.7 | ||
National Front | GE Nye | 282 | 0.5 | ||
Majority | 13,563 | 24.8 | |||
Turnout | 54,695 | 76.4 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Bob Dunn | 21,195 | 45.87 | ||
Labour Co-op | Sydney Irving | 19,803 | 42.86 | ||
Liberal | Ian Josephs | 4,407 | 9.54 | ||
National Front | I Nobbs | 476 | 1.03 | ||
Fancy Dress Party | J Beddowes | 328 | 0.71 | New | |
Majority | 1,392 | 3.01 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 46,209 | 80.35 | |||
Conservative gain from Labour Co-op | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour Co-op | Sydney Irving | 20,817 | 47.64 | ||
Conservative | Graham Bright | 15,331 | 35.09 | ||
Liberal | George H Dunk | 6,606 | 15.12 | ||
National Front | RH Aldous | 939 | 2.15 | ||
Majority | 5,486 | 12.55 | |||
Turnout | 43,693 | 76.60 | |||
Labour Co-op hold | Swing | +1.6 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour Co-op | Sydney Irving | 19,803 | 41.98 | ||
Conservative | Peter Trew | 16,149 | 34.24 | ||
Liberal | Ian Josephs | 10,273 | 21.78 | ||
National Front | RH Aldous | 945 | 2.00 | New | |
Majority | 3,654 | 7.74 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 47,170 | 83.44 | |||
Labour Co-op gain from Conservative | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Peter Trew | 27,822 | 45.96 | ||
Labour Co-op | Sydney Irving | 27,262 | 45.03 | ||
Liberal | J Paul Johnson | 5,453 | 9.01 | ||
Majority | 560 | 0.93 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 60,537 | 74.02 | |||
Conservative gain from Labour Co-op | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour Co-op | Sydney Irving | 29,547 | 49.84 | ||
Conservative | Peter Trew | 22,638 | 38.19 | ||
Liberal | Peter Loftus | 7,094 | 11.97 | ||
Majority | 6,909 | 11.65 | |||
Turnout | 59,279 | 80.80 | |||
Labour Co-op hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour Co-op | Sydney Irving | 27,371 | 46.46 | ||
Conservative | James J Davis | 22,496 | 38.18 | ||
Liberal | Morris Janis | 9,047 | 15.36 | ||
Majority | 4,875 | 8.28 | |||
Turnout | 58,914 | 81.48 | |||
Labour Co-op hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour Co-op | Sydney Irving | 25,323 | 45.83 | ||
Conservative | Peter Walker | 24,047 | 43.52 | ||
Liberal | Barry Charles Davis | 5,881 | 10.64 | New | |
Majority | 1,276 | 2.31 | |||
Turnout | 55,251 | 82.96 | |||
Labour Co-op hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour Co-op | Sydney Irving | 25,928 | 54.40 | ||
Conservative | Peter Walker | 21,730 | 45.60 | ||
Majority | 4,198 | 8.80 | |||
Turnout | 47,658 | 80.98 | |||
Labour Co-op hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour Co-op | Norman Dodds | 40,094 | 59.09 | ||
Conservative | Margaret Roberts | 27,760 | 40.91 | ||
Majority | 12,334 | 18.18 | |||
Turnout | 67,854 | 85.22 | |||
Labour Co-op hold | Swing | +3.71 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour Co-op | Norman Dodds | 38,128 | 56.38 | ||
Conservative | Margaret Roberts | 24,490 | 36.21 | ||
Liberal | Anthony H. Giles | 5,011 | 7.41 | New | |
Majority | 13,638 | 20.17 | |||
Turnout | 67,629 | 85.51 | |||
Labour Co-op hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour Co-op | Norman Dodds | 36,665 | 68.38 | ||
Conservative | Ralph Ernest Watkins Grubb | 16,951 | 31.62 | ||
Majority | 19,714 | 36.76 | |||
Turnout | 53,616 | 74.89 | |||
Labour Co-op hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Jennie Adamson | 46,514 | 52.39 | ||
Conservative | Godfrey Mitchell | 42,276 | 47.61 | ||
Majority | 4,238 | 4.78 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 88,790 | 68.00 | |||
Labour gain from Conservative | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Frank Clarke | 38,242 | 51.79 | ||
Labour | Jennie Adamson | 35,596 | 48.21 | ||
Majority | 2,646 | 3.58 | |||
Turnout | 73,838 | 69.63 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Frank Clarke | 34,095 | 55.49 | ||
Labour | John Edmund Mills | 27,349 | 44.51 | ||
Majority | 6,746 | 10.98 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 61,444 | 79.01 | |||
Conservative gain from Labour | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | John Edmund Mills | 26,871 | 50.6 | +1.6 | |
Unionist | Ashley Edwards | 16,568 | 31.2 | −19.8 | |
Liberal | John Woolfenden Williamson | 9,689 | 18.2 | New | |
Majority | 10,303 | 19.4 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 53,128 | 76.9 | −2.3 | ||
Registered electors | 69,070 | ||||
Labour gain from Unionist | Swing | +10.7 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | Angus McDonnell | 20,108 | 51.0 | New | |
Labour | John Edmund Mills | 19,352 | 49.0 | −5.2 | |
Majority | 756 | 3.0 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 39,460 | 79.2 | +9.2 | ||
Registered electors | 49,804 | ||||
Unionist gain from Labour | Swing | N/A |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | John Edmund Mills | 18,329 | 54.2 | +10.3 | |
Constitutionalist | George Jarrett | 15,500 | 45.8 | −3.8 | |
Majority | 2,829 | 8.4 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 33,829 | 70.0 | −1.2 | ||
Registered electors | 48,320 | ||||
Labour gain from Constitutionalist | Swing | +7.1 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Constitutionalist | George Jarrett | 16,662 | 49.6 | New | |
Labour | John Edmund Mills | 14,744 | 43.9 | +15.3 | |
Liberal | Alison Garland | 2,175 | 6.5 | −64.9 | |
Majority | 1,918 | 5.7 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 33,581 | 71.2 | +23.3 | ||
Registered electors | 47,132 | ||||
Constitutionalist gain from Liberal | Swing | N/A |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | John Edmund Mills | 13,610 | 50.2 | +21.6 | |
Liberal | Thomas Wing | 4,562 | 16.8 | −54.6 | |
Coalition Unionist | Richard Meller | 4,221 | 15.5 | New | |
National | Reginald Applin | 2,952 | 10.9 | New | |
Ind. Unionist | Frank Emil Fehr | 1,802 | 6.6 | New | |
Majority | 9,048 | 33.4 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 27,147 | 61.3 | +13.4 | ||
Registered electors | 44,281 | ||||
Labour gain from Liberal | Swing | +38.1 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
C | Liberal | James Rowlands | 15,626 | 71.4 | +20.8 |
Labour | William Ling | 6,256 | 28.6 | New | |
Majority | 9,370 | 42.8 | +41.6 | ||
Turnout | 21,892 | 47.9 | −36.5 | ||
Registered electors | 45,666 | ||||
Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |||
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. |
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 July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lib-Lab | James Rowlands | 9,152 | 50.6 | +2.8 | |
Conservative | William Foot Mitchell | 8,918 | 49.4 | -2.8 | |
Majority | 234 | 1.2 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 18,070 | 84.4 | -3.4 | ||
Registered electors | 21,398 | ||||
Lib-Lab gain from Conservative | Swing | +2.8 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Foot Mitchell | 9,807 | 52.2 | +10.8 | |
Lib-Lab | James Rowlands | 8,990 | 47.8 | -10.8 | |
Majority | 817 | 4.4 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 18,797 | 87.8 | +5.4 | ||
Registered electors | 21,398 | ||||
Conservative gain from Lib-Lab | Swing | +10.8 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lib-Lab | James Rowlands | 9,532 | 58.6 | New | |
Conservative | William Hart Dyke | 6,728 | 41.4 | N/A | |
Majority | 2,804 | 17.2 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 16,260 | 82.4 | N/A | ||
Registered electors | 19,741 | ||||
Lib-Lab gain from Conservative | Swing | N/A |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Hart Dyke | Unopposed | |||
Conservative hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Hart Dyke | 5,699 | 55.6 | +2.7 | |
Liberal | Patteson Nickalls | 4,557 | 44.4 | −2.7 | |
Majority | 1,142 | 11.2 | +5.4 | ||
Turnout | 10,256 | 73.8 | +3.4 | ||
Registered electors | 13,888 | ||||
Conservative hold | Swing | +2.7 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Hart Dyke | 5,294 | 52.9 | −5.7 | |
Liberal | Jeremiah Lyon [32] | 4,722 | 47.1 | +5.7 | |
Majority | 572 | 5.8 | −11.4 | ||
Turnout | 10,016 | 70.4 | +6.3 | ||
Registered electors | 14,227 | ||||
Conservative hold | Swing | −5.7 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Hart Dyke | Unopposed | |||
Conservative hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Hart Dyke | 4,198 | 58.6 | +5.8 | |
Liberal | James Ebenezer Saunders | 2,965 | 41.4 | -5.8 | |
Majority | 1,233 | 17.2 | +11.6 | ||
Turnout | 7,163 | 64.1 | -11.9 | ||
Registered electors | 11,173 | ||||
Conservative hold | Swing | +5.8 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Hart Dyke | 4,488 | 52.8 | ||
Liberal | James Ebenezer Saunders | 4,006 | 47.2 | ||
Majority | 482 | 5.6 | |||
Turnout | 8,494 | 76.0 | |||
Registered electors | 11,173 | ||||
Conservative win (new seat) |