Stafford (UK Parliament constituency)

Jump to: navigation, search Stafford is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. The sitting MP is the Conservative Jeremy Lefroy. {| class="toc" id="toc"

Contents
[hide]*1 Boundaries
 * 1.1 Political complexion
 * 2 Members of Parliament
 * 2.1 1295-1640
 * 2.2 1640-1885
 * 2.3 1885-1950
 * 2.4 1983-present
 * 3 Election results
 * 3.1 Elections of the 2010s
 * 3.2 Elections of the 2000s
 * 3.3 Elections of the 1990s
 * 3.4 Elections of the 1980s
 * 4 Notes and references
 * 5 Bibliography
 * 6 See also
 * }

[edit] Boundaries
The constituency includes the southerly part of the borough of Stafford, including the town of Stafford itself, plus the Penkridge area of South Staffordshire district.

[edit] Political complexion
Since 1900 the Conservative party has gained the seat on two occasions. There have also been two Labour gains:
 * In their landslide victory in 1945, but the Conservatives regained the seat at the next election, in 1950.
 * Boundary changes in 1997 resulting from the creation of the new Stone constituency made Stafford somewhat more marginal than previously. Sitting Stafford MP Bill Cash followed some of his electors into the Stone constituency, which he won, and Labour gained the constituency in their landslide victory in 1997. The defeated Conservative candidate in 1997 was David Cameron, who in the next election was elected as the MP for the safe seat of Witney, and became the Conservative Party leader in 2005, and Prime Minister in 2010.

[edit] 1295-1640

 * Constituency created (1295) [1]
 * 1295: William Reynor and John Beyton
 * 1542: Walter Blount and William Stamford
 * 1545-1547: Sir Henry Stafford and William Stamford
 * 1547-1552: Sir Henry Stafford [2]
 * 1553: Edward Colbarne and Francis Smyth
 * 1553: Henry Stafford and Sir Anthony Browne/Simon Lowe
 * 1555: Henry Stafford [3] and Thomas Harcourt
 * 1558-1559: Edward Stafford [3] and James Fowler
 * 1588-1589: Henry Bourchier [4] and Francis Cradock
 * 1593: Henry Bourchier and Francis Cradock
 * 1597-1598 Edward Stafford and Henry Bourchier
 * 1601: Edward Stafford and William Essex [3] [5]
 * 1603-1611 Hugh Beeston (replaced by Arthur Ingram in 1609) and George Craddock [6]
 * 1609-1611: Arthur Ingram [6]
 * 1614: Sir Walter Devereux [7] and Thomas Gibbs[7]
 * 1621-1622: Matthew Craddock [6] and Richard Dyott [6]
 * 1624-1625: Matthew Craddock and Richard Dyott
 * 1625: Matthew Craddock and Sir Robert Hatton (replaced by Sir John Offley in 1626)
 * 1626: Sir John Offley and Bulstrode Whitelock
 * 1628-1629 Matthew Craddock and William Wingfield
 * This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

[edit] Elections of the 1980s

 * Death of Sir Hugh Fraser 6 March 1984

[edit] Notes and references

 * 1) ^ "Tamworth Parliamentary Borough 1275-1832". The Staffordshire Encyclopaedia. http://www.the-staffordshire-encyclopaedia.co.uk/view.php?id=207. Retrieved 25 october 2010.
 * 2) ^ Dictionary of National Biography
 * 3) ^ a b c Leigh Rayment's historical list of MPs: Constituencies beginning with "S", part 4
 * 4) ^ J E Neale, The Elizabethan House of Commons (London: Jonathan Cape, 1949)
 * 5) ^, Heywood Townshend, Historical Collections:: or, An exact Account of the Proceedings of the Four last Parliaments of Q. Elizabeth (1680) [1]
 * 6) ^ a b c d Cobbett's Parliamentary history of England, from the Norman Conquest in 1066 to the year 1803 (London: Thomas Hansard, 1808) [2]
 * 7) ^ a b Maija Jansson (ed.), Proceedings in Parliament, 1614 (House of Commons) (Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1988)
 * 8) ^ Chetwynd was initially declared re-elected in 1710, but on petition (in a dispute over the franchise), he was adjudged not have been duly elected and his opponent, Vernon, was seated in his place. (Robert Beatson, A Chronological Register of Both Houses of Parliament (1807), Volume 1, p 177)
 * 9) ^ Elde's opponent, Chetwynd, petitioned against the result. Elde was "unanimously expelled the House for having offered to compromise the petition against his return", and Chetwynd was seated in his place. (Henry Stooks Smith, The Parliaments of England from 1715 to 1847, Volume 2 (London: Simpkin, Marshall & Co, 1845), p 45)
 * 10) ^ After Goodricke resigned to contest another constituency in May 1835, the House of Commons refused to issue a writ for a new election until February 1837, when the motion to issue a writ was passed by a single vote. (F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885, 2nd edition, Aldershot: Parliamentary Research Services, 1989, p 283)
 * 11) ^ The 1868 election was declared void on petition and a new election was held - F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885. (F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885, 2nd edition, Aldershot: Parliamentary Research Services, 1989, p 283)
 * 12) ^ BBC 2010 General Election Site
 * 13) ^ BBC 2005 General Election Site
 * 14) ^ BBC 2001 General Election Site
 * 15) ^ BBC 1997 General Election Site

[edit] Bibliography

 * Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1969]. British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3rd edition ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
 * Britain Votes/Europe Votes By-Election Supplement 1983-, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Parliamentary Research Services 1985)
 * Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs
 * Robert Beatson, A Chronological Register of Both Houses of Parliament (London: Longman, Hurst, Res & Orme, 1807) [3]
 * 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) [4]
 * Henry Stooks Smith, The Parliaments of England from 1715 to 1847, Volume 2 (London: Simpkin, Marshall & Co, 1845) [5]

[edit] See also

 * Stafford by-election, 1984
 * List of Parliamentary constituencies in Staffordshire