Keeping the British Liberal Party flag flying high

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The second result declared was Sunderland South which was held by Labour. Their majority over Conservative was up from 29.0% to 29.4%. Then the Torbay result was declared. The percentage votes for each party were as follows (1986 general election):
Liberal: 44.9 (49.5)
Conservative: 44.0 (35.4)
Labour: 11.1 (15.1)
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Liberal majority: 0.9 (14.1)
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The Liberals held Cheltenham. Their majority over Conservative was up from 12.6% to 13.6%, because of boundary changes which transferred Tory voting wards to the adjacent Cirencester and Tewkesbury constituency. The Conservatives held Guildford, with their majority over Liberal up from 8.9% to 11.1%. The first seat which changed hands was Basildon. This was a Conservative gain from Labour by a majority of 1.8%. In 1986 the Labour majority was 13.3% over Liberal. Here are the percentage votes:
Conservative: 39.0 (24.9)
Labour: 37.2 (44.7)
Liberal: 23.8 (30.4)
The swing was Labour to Conservative was 10.8%.

Labour held the safe seat of Newcastle-upon-Tyne Central, and Nuneaton which the Conservatives hoped to win. But the Labour majority fell only from 9.7% to 3.7%. Labour also won the new seats of Lewisham East and Salford, and held Nelson and Colne.

 

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More constituencies declared their results Peter Shore was back in West Ham. Labour also won the new seats of Liverpool Riverside, Preston, and Warrington North and Warrington South. They held Accrington, Deptford, Lewisham West, Bethnal Green and Stepney, and Wallasey. The percentage votes in Wallasey were:
Labour: 39.0 (38.3)
Conservative: 31,0 (24.2)
Liberal: 27.8 (37.5)
Green: 2.2 (n/a)
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Labour majority: 8.0 (0.8)
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The Conservatives won the new seats of Enfield, Reading East and Reading West, and Wembley, and held Beckenham, and Sutton and Cheam. They took Exeter, and Ipswich from the Liberals.

Chris Patten, a Minister of State at the Foreign Office held Bath. He was in favour of voting for a Conservative government if they were the largest party, but without a majority. The Liberals also kept Birkenhead, Croydon Central, and Watford. Manuela Sykes was back in Finchley. She was on the left wing of the Liberal Party, and made it very clear that she would never vote to put a Conservative government in office. She also said that if after the election the Conservatives were the largest party in the House of Commons, but did not have a majority, and Alfred Morris did not resign as Prime Minister but waited for the vote on the King's Speech, she would vote with Labour. Her majority over Conservative fell from 15.9% to 10.9%. The percentage votes were as follows:
Manuela Sykes (Liberal): 46.2 (44.6)
Conservative: 35.3 (26,7)
Labour: 28,7 (15,7)
Green: 2,8 (n/a).

 

[pipisme]

Election results continued. Labour held Barnsley, Barrow- in-Furness, Blackburn, Coventry North East, Dagenham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne East, Plymouth Devonport, Tooting, and Tottenham. The first result declared in Scotland was Glasgow Govan. There the Labour majority over SNP fell from 35.7% to 16.4%. Labour also won the new constituency of Birmingham Hodge Hill, and gained Darlington from Liberal.

The Conservatives held Ruislip-Northwood and took Halifax from Labour. The Liberals held Cambridge, and Portsmouth South. In Cambridge the Liberal majority over Labour fell only from 2.8% to 0.3% .

After 50 results, the number of seats won by each party were as follows: Labour - 29, Conservative - 12, Liberal - 9.

 

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It was now 12.30 am on 7 June 1991, and the pace of declarations was speeding up. The Conservatives held Altrincham and Sale, Bromley, Farnham, Faversham, Hendon North, Hendon South, Ilford North, Reigate, Surbiton, and Uxbridge, and won the new seats of Acton and Ealing South. Battersea, Bury North, and Bury South. They also gained Fulham from Labour, and Ilford South, Orpington, Putney, and Upminster from the Liberals. Harriet Harman, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, lost her seat in Putney. However the swing from Liberal to Conservative was only 2%, less than half the average swing.

Robin Cook, the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, was back in Glasgow Garscadden. Labour also held Glasgow Maryhill, Glasgow Shettleston, Bootle, Carlisle, Coventry South-East, Doncaster, Dulwich, Eccles, Flintshire East, Greenwich, and Hartlepool. The Speaker, Ernest Armstrong, was back in Durham North-West.

 

[pipisme]

More seats held by Labour: Great Grimsby, Hull East, Hull West, Manchester Central, Nottingham East, Oldham East, Oldham West, Rhondda, Rotherham, South Shields, Thurrock, Warley East, Warley West, Willesden East, Willesden West, Wolverhampton South-East, and York. Labour won the new seats of Hull North, Knowsley North, Knowsley South, Paisley North, Paisley South, St Helens North, and St. Helens South. There was a recount in Paddington, requested by the Conservative candidate. In the 1986 general election the Labour majority over Conservative was 15.3%.

Paddy Ashdown, joint Government Chief Whip (with Ann Taylor - Labour) is back in Yeovil. The Liberals have also held Southport, and won the new seat of Glasgow Kelvin. (1) They were pleased to win there, as it was forecast as going Labour or Liberal. The percentage votes for each party were as follows:
Liberal: 36.3
Labour: 33.5
SNP: 17.0
Conservative : 11.2
Green: 2.0
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Liberal majority: 2.8
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With 109 results now declared, the number of seats won by each party were: Labour - 65, Conservative - 31, Liberal - 12, Speaker - 1.

(1) This constituency corresponded roughly to Glasgow Hillhead in OTL.

 

[pipisme]

More results were declared. Cherie Booth, was back in Liverpool Garston. Her majority over Conservative was up from 9.9% to 17.0%. Here are the percentage votes (1986 general election):
Cherie Booth (Labour): 47.1 (40.0)
Conservative: 29.5 (30.1)
Liberal: 23.4 (29.9)
She was tipped for a ministerial post if Labour were back in government after the election. In Liverpool, Labour also held Walton, and West Derby.

 

[pipisme]

Labour also held Aberdeen North, Bassetlaw, Blyth Valley, Burnley, Coventry North-West, City of Durham, Glasgow Cathcart, Glasgow Provan, Glasgow Springburn, Hemsworth, Kirkcaldy, Leyton, Manchester Wythenshawe, Mansfield, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Sheffield Heeley, Stalybridge and Hyde, Sedgefield, Stoke-on-Trent Central, Walthamstow, Western Isles, and Wolverhampton North-East. They also won the new seats of Bristol East, Clydebank and Milngavie, Dunfermline East, Motherwell South, Newport West, Sheffield Central, Tyne Bridge, and Worsley.

Anthony Blair, the shadow Education Secretary, was back in Dorking. The Conservatives also held Ashford, Bosworth, Derbyshire South-East, Epping Forest, Gloucester, Havant and Waterloo, Northampton South, Ramsgate, Surrey East, and Wycombe, They won the new seat of Wyre. The declaration from the very marginal seat of Wolverhampton South-West was broadcast life on television. Labour were defending a majority of 38. It was a Conservative gain from Labour. Here are the percentage votes for each party:
Conservative: 43.4 (37.1)
Labour: 34.9 (37.2)
Liberal: 21.7 (25.7).
The swing from Labour to Conservative was 4.3%, which was considerably below the average national swing of 7.6%. The Tories also took Coventry South-West, Derbyshire South-West, and Lincoln from Labour, and Brentwood and Ongar, Cheadle, Gillingham, Gloucestershire South, Kenilworth, Wotton-under-Edge, and Worcester from Liberal.

The Liberals held Margate. The Turner Art Gallery opened there in 1988, and the town was a popular place to live with artistic people. Other constituencies which stayed Liberal were Hertfordshire South, Keighley, Montgomery, and Newbury, and they won the new seat of Liverpool Mossley Hill. The Scottish National Party held Clackmannan and Stirlingshire East. Their majority over Labour was up from 15,1% to 23.7%.

With 172 results declared the number of seats won by each party were: Labour - 98, Conservative - 54, Liberal - 18, SNP - 1. Speaker - 1.

 

[pipisme]

The declaration of the result for Wirral South was life from Bebington Town Hall was live on television and radio. The Conservative candidate was the party leader, Geoffrey Howe. The percentage votes for each party were:
Geoffrey Howe (Conservative): 44.9
Labour : 29.6
Liberal: 23.2
Green: 2.3
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Conservative majority: 15.3
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In interviews with television and radio interviews, Howe said that the results were encouraging. He would be happy to work with the Liberal Party in a coalition government,

The Conservatives held Aldridge Brownhills, Brighton Montpelier (1), Buckingham, Canterbury, Chertsey and Walton, Chesham and Amersham, Chislehurst, Clitheroe, Crosby, Esher, Gosport, Harrogate, Hove, Kingston-upon-Thames, Portsmouth North, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Shipley, Solihull, Warwick and Leamington, and Worthing. They also won the new seats of Benfleet, Bromsgrove, Cheshunt. Congleton, Hertford and Stortford, Hertfordshire North, Mitcham and Morden, Rochford, Stirling, Stockton South, Wirral West. The declaration for Stirling was broadcast live on radio and television. The percentage votes were:
Conservative: 34.1
Labour: 33.5
Liberal: 17.1
SNP: 14.2
Green: 1.1
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Conservative majority: 0.6
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The Conservatives gained Aberdeen South, Burton, and Dudley West from Labour; and Beverley, Bexleyheath, Eastleigh, Halesowen and Stourbridge, High Peak, Hornchurch, Leeds North-East, Northampton North, Poole, Romford, and Shoreham from Liberal.

(1) Similar to Brighton Pavilion in OTL.

 

[pipisme]

Labour held Barking, Birmingham Erdington, Birmingham Small Heath, Bishop Auckland, Blaydon, Bradford West, Bristol South, Coatbridge and Airdrie, Dudley East, East Kilbride, Edinburgh East, Fife West, Gateshead East, Glasgow Pollok, Greenock and Port Glasgow, Hamilton, Islington North, Lanark, Leeds South, Manchester Blackley, Newcastle-upon-Tyne North, Ogmore, Pontefract and Castleford, Sheffield Attercliffe, Sheffield Brightside, Swansea East, Swansea West, Wakefield, and Wigan.

 

[pipisme]

Labour won the new constituencies of Dunfermline West, Hornsey and Wood Green, Liverpool Broadgreen, Mid Glamorgan, Motherwell North, Stockport, Stockton North, and Wansbeck. The Liberals kept Bradford South, Bristol West, Devon North, Leeds North-West, Manchester Withington, Norfolk North, Plymouth Sutton, Salisbury, Stretford, Tonbridge and Malling, Wells, and won the new seat of Hastings and Rye. Plaid Cymru held Caernarfon, and Ynys Mon.

With 269 results declared, the number of seats won by each party were: Labour 135, Conservative: 100, Liberal: 30, Plaid Cymru: 2, SNP: 1, Speaker - 1.

 

[pipisme]

The election results were continuing to come in thick and fast. The Conservatives held Banbury, Chichester, Croydon North-East, Dorset South, Epsom and Ewell, Great Yarmouth, Henley, Marlow, Staffordshire South, Southgate, and Surrey North-West, They won the new seats of Cambridgeshire East, Cambridgeshire West, Carshalton and Wallington, Christchurch and Lymington, Crawley, and Fylde. They gained Birmingham Hall Green, Dumfries, Gravesend, Hemel Hempstead, and Norwich North from Labour; and Bridgwater, Brigg and Scunthorpe, Derbyshire West, Maidstone, Sudbury and Woodbridge, and Taunton from the Liberals.

 

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The Conservatives also held Arundel, Aylesbury, Basingstoke, Bedfordshire Mid, Bournemouth Branksome, Brighton Woodingdean, Cities of London and Westminster, Croydon South, Harrow East, Harrow West, Norfolk South-West, Sevenoaks, Stafford, Stratford-on-Avon, Sunbury-on-Thames, Sutton Coldfield, and Windsor and Maidenhead. They also won the new seats of Horsham, Rutland and Melton, Selby, Slough, South Ribble, Staffordshire Mid, Stamford and Spalding, Stevenage, Welwyn and Hatfield, Westmorland and Lonsdale, and Woodspring,

Conservative gains from Labour were Bolton West, City of Chester, Ealing North, Kettering, Newark, and Swindon, They took Braintree, Cirencester and Tewkesbury, Devizes, Dover and Deal, Isle of Ely, Lancaster. Monmouth, New Forest, Southend East, Southend West, Stroud, Wellingborough, and Westbury from the Liberals.

 

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The Prices and Consumer Secretary, Roy Hattersley, won Birmingham Sparkbrook. He was previously MP for Birmingham Stechford but that constituency was abolished in the redistribution in 1988, and he stood for Sparkbrook. Jeremy Corbyn, was back in Birmingham Selly Oak. Labour also held Ayrshire South, Birmingham Northfield, Birmingham Perry Barr, Cannock, Croydon North-West, Edinburgh Leith, Feltham, Leeds East, Leicester East, Leicester West, Neath, Normanton, Norwood, Seaham, Stoke-on-Trent North, Stoke-on-Trent South, Wallsend, and Widnes.

 

[pipisme]

The Lord President of the Council and leader of the House of Commons, Rosa Bancroft, was back in East Ham. Her majority was down from 34.0% over Liberal to 28.7% over Conservative. Labour also held Aberavon, Cardiff West, Chesterfield, Glasgow Rutherglen, Gower, Islington South and Finsbury, Pontypridd, Southall, Walsall North, and Walsall South.

 

[sarahz]

The election results were continuing to come in thick and fast. The Conservatives held Banbury, Chichester, Croydon North-East, Dorset South, Epsom and Ewell, Great Yarmouth, Henley, Marlow, Staffordshire South, Southgate, and Surrey North-West, They won the new seats of Cambridgeshire East, Cambridgeshire West, Carshalton and Wallington, Christchurch, Crawley, Fylde, Stockton South. They gained Birmingham Hall Green, Dumfries, Gravesend, and Norwich North from Labour; and Bridgwater, Brigg and Scunthorpe, Derbyshire West, Hemel Hempstead, Maidstone, Sudbury and Woodbridge, and Taunton from the Liberals.

boo, losing Maidstone sucks.

 

[pipisme]

boo, losing Maidstone sucks.

The Liberals lost Maidstone to the Tories by only a majority of 1.9%. Labour held Edinburgh South, with their majority up from 5.3% over Liberal to 10.3% over Conservative. The percentage votes were (1986 general election):
Labour: 36.5 (39.1)
Conservative: 26.2 (20.2)
Liberal: 23.5 (34.4)
SNP: 13.8 (6.3).

 

[pipisme]

Labour also held Derby South, Dumbartonshire East, Dundee West, Hackney North and Stoke Newington, Pontypool, and Vauxhall. John Smith, the former leader of the Labour Party and Prime Minister, won the new seat of Renfrewshire West and Inverclyde, and the Paymaster-General, Neil Kinnock, won the new seat of Monmouthshire West. Other new seats won by Labour were Crewe and Nantwich, Durham North, East Lothian, Ellesmere Port and Neston, Falkirk East, Huddersfield, Kilmarnock and Loudoun, Monmouthshire North, Poplar and Bow, and Redcar.

Michael Meadowcroft, the Environment Secretary, was back in Leeds West. His majority over Labour was up from 10.9% to 17.2%. Here the percentage votes:
Michael Meadowcroft (Liberal): 47.3 (50.5)
Labour: 30.1 (39.2)
Conservative: 20.3 (9.9)
Green: 2.3 (n/a).
The Liberals also held Conwy, Heywood and Royton, Hazel Grove, Scarborough and Whitby, Sheffield Hallam, and Weston-super-Mare.

 

[pipisme]

The Education and Science Secretary, Menzies Campbell, was back in Fife East, but his majority over Conservative was down from 11.0% to 2.0%. The Liberals also held Colne Valley, Dartford, Denbigh, Dorset North, Eastbourne, Falmouth and Camborne, Hereford, Isle of Wight, Nottingham North, Southampton Test, Tiverton, and Twickenham. They gained Dorset West from Conservative by a majority of 1.4%. The previous Conservative majority was 4.1%. Here are the percentage votes:
Liberal: 46.3 (38.5)
Conservative: 44.9 (42.6)
Labour: 8.8 (18.9).

 

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The Liberals won the new seats of Ceredigion and North Pembrokeshire, Oxford West and Abingdon, Peebles and Selkirk, Richmond and Barnes, Ross, Cromarty and Skye, and Roxburgh and Berwickshire. The SNP kept Angus South, Banff, Perth and East Perthshire. They won the new seat of Moray and Nairn, and gained Dunbartonshire West, and West Lothian from Labour. There was a recount in Carmarthen requested by Plaid Cymru in a seat being defended by Labour, and in Chelmsford, requested by the Conservatives in a seat being defended by the Liberals. There was a second recount in Paddington.

After 428 results declared, the number of seats won by each party were Labour - 185, Conservative - 175, Liberal - 57, SNP - 7, Plaid Cymru - 2, Speaker - 1.

 

[pipisme]

More results were declared. The declaration in the Prime Minister's constituency of Manchester Gorton was broadcast live on television and radio. Alfred Morris increased his majority from 31.7% to 33.2%. The percentage votes for each party were (June 1991 general election):
Alfred Morris (Labour): 57.3 (57.6)
Liberal: 24.1 (25.9)
Conservative: 13.6 (16.5)
Green: 5.0 (n/a).

In interviews he gave to the media, Morris said that the results were going better for Labour than many had forecast. The party had lost fewer seats than expected, and could be the largest party in the House of Commons. If they were, he would be happy to continue the coalition with the Liberals. Afterwards he was driven in the official prime ministerial car to London.