1979 United Kingdom general election in Wales

The 1979 United Kingdom general election in Wales saw the Labour Party win the most votes and seats in Wales.^[1]

1979 United Kingdom general election in Wales

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All 38 Welsh seats to the House of Commons
First party Second party   Leader James Callaghan Margaret Thatcher Party Labour Conservative Leader since 5 April 1976 11 February 1975 Last election 23 seats, 49.5% 8 seats, 23.9% Seats won 22 11 Seat change 1 3 Popular vote 795,500 526,300 Percentage 48.6% 32.2% Swing 0.9% 8.3%   Third party Fourth party   Leader David Steel Gwynfor Evans Party Liberal Plaid Cymru Leader since 7 July 1976 1 August 1945 Last election 2 seats, 15.5% 3 seats, 10.8% Seats won 1 2 Seat change 1 1 Popular vote 173,500 132,500 Percentage 10.6% 8.1% Swing 4.9% 2.7%

Background

The Labour party won the most votes in Wales, although the Conservatives won most votes UK-wide.^[1]

John Morris, Baron Morris of Aberavon was under the impression that Prime Minister James Callaghan would call a general election in the autumn of 1978, but called it off. A Welsh devolution referendum was held in March 1979, two months prior. A Welsh Assembly was rejected, with regional distrust as a potential factor.^[2]

MPs elected

Main article: List of MPs for constituencies in Wales (1979–1983)

References

1. "UK Election Statistics: 1918-2022, A Long Century of Elections" (PDF). House of Commons Library. p. 22.
2. WalesOnline (2011-10-02). "Lord Morris of Aberavon lifts the lid on the disastrous 1979 devolution referendum". WalesOnline. Retrieved 2022-12-09.