2024 United Kingdom general election

A general election was held in the United Kingdom on 4 July 2024 to elect all 650 members of the House of Commons. The opposition Labour Party, led by Keir Starmer, won a landslide victory over the governing Conservative Party under Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, ending 14 years of Conservative-led government. Labour secured 411 seats and a 174-seat majority, the third-best showing in the party's history and its best since 2001. The party's vote share was 33 %, the lowest of any governing party on record, making this the least proportional general election in British history. They became the largest party in England, Scotland and Wales. The Conservatives suffered their worst-ever defeat, winning 121 seats with 23 % of the vote and losing 251 seats, including those of the former prime minister Liz Truss and 12 Cabinet ministers. A total of 335 new MPs entered the House of Commons. Smaller parties saw record support, with 42 % of the total vote. The Liberal Democrats, led by Ed Davey, became the third-largest party with 72 seats, their best result ever and better than any Liberal Party result since 1923. Reform UK, led by Nigel Farage, won five seats and 14 % of the vote, the third-highest vote share, and the Green Party won four seats. For both parties this was their best parliamentary result to date. In Scotland the Scottish National Party dropped from 48 to 9 seats, losing its status as Scotland's largest party. In Wales, Plaid Cymru won four seats. In Northern Ireland, which has a distinct set of political parties, Sinn Féin retained seven seats; the first election in which an Irish nationalist party won the most seats in Northern Ireland. The Democratic Unionist Party dropped from eight to five seats. Campaign issues included the economy, healthcare, housing, energy and immigration. There was relatively little discussion of Brexit, which was a major issue during the 2019 general election. This was the first general election under the Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Act 2022, the first with photo identification required to vote in Great Britain, and the first contested using the new constituency boundaries implemented following the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies.

Infobox

Registered

48,224,212

Turnout

28,809,340 59 % ( 7 pp)

Leader

Keir Starmer

Party

Labour

Leader since

4 April 2020

Leader's seat

Holborn and St Pancras

Last election

202 seats, 32 %

Seats won

411

Seat change

211

Popular vote

9,708,716

Percentage

33 %

Swing

1 pp

Tables

· Background › Changes to the composition of the House of Commons before the election

Elected in 2019

Affiliation

Elected in 2019

Affiliation

At dissolution in 2024

Members

Difference

Vacant

Affiliation

Vacant

Affiliation

Members

Total

Affiliation

Total

Affiliation

650

Members

650

Members

Total voting

Affiliation

Total voting

Affiliation

639

Members

638

Members

Majority

Affiliation

Majority

Affiliation

Members

Affiliation		Members
Affiliation		Elected in 2019	At dissolution in 2024	Difference
	Conservative	365	344	21
	Labour	202	205	3
	SNP	48	43	5
	Independent	0	17	17
	Liberal Democrats	11	15	4
	DUP	8	7	1
	Sinn Féin	7	7
	Plaid Cymru	4	3	1
	SDLP	2	2
	Alba	Did not exist	2	2
	Alliance (NI)	1	1
	Green (E&W)	1	1
	Speaker	1	1
	Reform	0	1	1
	Workers Party	Did not exist	1	1
Vacant		0	0
Total		650	650
Total voting		639	638	1
Majority		87	44	43

Key dates · Date of the election › Timetable

22 May

Date

22 May

Event

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak requests a dissolution of parliament from King Charles III and announces the date of polling day for the general election as 4 July.

24 May

Date

24 May

Event

Last sitting day of business (wash-up period) in the 2019–2024 Parliament. Parliament prorogued.

25 May

Date

25 May

Event

Beginning of pre-election period (also known as purdah).

30 May

Date

30 May

Event

Dissolution of parliament and official start of the campaign. Royal Proclamation issued dissolving the 2019 Parliament, summoning the 2024 Parliament and setting the date for its first meeting.

7 June

Date

7 June

Event

Nominations of candidates close (4 pm). Publication of statement of persons nominated, including notice of poll and situation of polling stations (5 pm).

13 June

Date

13 June

Event

Deadline to register to vote at 11:59 pm in Northern Ireland.

18 June

Date

18 June

Event

Deadline to register to vote.

19 June

Date

19 June

Event

Deadline to apply for a postal vote.

26 June

Date

26 June

Event

Deadline to register for a proxy vote at 5 pm. Exemptions applied for emergencies.

4 July

Date

4 July

Event

Polling Day – polls open from 7 am to 10 pm.

4–5 July

Date

4–5 July

Event

Results announced in 648 of 650 constituencies.

5 July

Date

5 July

Event

Labour wins election with an eventual 174-seat majority. End of pre-election period (also known as purdah). Sir Keir Starmer is appointed Prime Minister by King Charles III and forms a new government following the resignation of Rishi Sunak.

6 July

Date

6 July

Event

Results announced for final two undeclared seats, following recounts.

9–16 July

Date

9–16 July

Event

MPs taking their seat are sworn in.

17 July

Date

17 July

Event

State Opening of Parliament and King's Speech.

Date	Event
22 May	Prime Minister Rishi Sunak requests a dissolution of parliament from King Charles III and announces the date of polling day for the general election as 4 July.
24 May	Last sitting day of business (wash-up period) in the 2019–2024 Parliament. Parliament prorogued.
25 May	Beginning of pre-election period (also known as purdah).
30 May	Dissolution of parliament and official start of the campaign. Royal Proclamation issued dissolving the 2019 Parliament, summoning the 2024 Parliament and setting the date for its first meeting.
7 June	Nominations of candidates close (4 pm). Publication of statement of persons nominated, including notice of poll and situation of polling stations (5 pm).
13 June	Deadline to register to vote at 11:59 pm in Northern Ireland.
18 June	Deadline to register to vote.
19 June	Deadline to apply for a postal vote.
26 June	Deadline to register for a proxy vote at 5 pm. Exemptions applied for emergencies.
4 July	Polling Day – polls open from 7 am to 10 pm.
4–5 July	Results announced in 648 of 650 constituencies.
5 July	Labour wins election with an eventual 174-seat majority. End of pre-election period (also known as purdah). Sir Keir Starmer is appointed Prime Minister by King Charles III and forms a new government following the resignation of Rishi Sunak.
6 July	Results announced for final two undeclared seats, following recounts.
9 July	First meeting of the new Parliament of the United Kingdom for the formal election of Speaker of the House of Commons. Sir Lindsay Hoyle is re-elected unopposed and calls on Starmer and Sunak to speak as Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition respectively for the first time.
9–16 July	MPs taking their seat are sworn in.
17 July	State Opening of Parliament and King's Speech.

Notional 2019 results on 2023 boundaries · Electoral system › Boundary reviews › Notional 2019 results

Actual

Party

Actual

Party

Notional

2019 MPs

Difference

Party		2019 MPs
Party		Actual	Notional	Difference
	Conservative	365	372	7
	Labour	202	200	2
	SNP	48	48
	Liberal Democrats	11	8	3
	DUP	8	8
	Sinn Féin	7	7
	Plaid Cymru	4	2	2
	SDLP	2	2
	Green (E&W)	1	1
	Alliance	1	1
	Speaker	1	1

Major party election spending · Campaign › Overview

Labour

Party

Labour

£ (millions)

Percent of total

31 %

Conservative and Unionist

Party

Conservative and Unionist

£ (millions)

Percent of total

25 %

Liberal Democrats

Party

Liberal Democrats

£ (millions)

Percent of total

6 %

Reform UK

Party

Reform UK

£ (millions)

Percent of total

5 %

Green

Party

Green

£ (millions)

Percent of total

1 %

Scottish National

Party

Scottish National

£ (millions)

Percent of total

0 %

Co-operative

Party

Co-operative

£ (millions)

Percent of total

0 %

Total (all party, non-party and candidate)

Party

Total (all party, non-party and candidate)

£ (millions)

Party	£ (millions)	Percent of total
Labour	30	31 %
Conservative and Unionist	23	25 %
Liberal Democrats	5	6 %
Reform UK	5	5 %
Green	1	1 %
Scottish National	0	0 %
Co-operative	0	0 %
Total (all party, non-party and candidate)	94

· Debates and interviews › Debates

← 2019 debates

2024

References

Given that Sinn Féin members of Parliament (MPs) practise abstentionism and do not take their seats, while the Speaker a
The figure does not include Lindsay Hoyle, the speaker of the House of Commons, who was included in the Labour seat tota
Seat change compared to notional 2019 result under new constituency boundaries. This means Labour won 200 notional seats
Seat change compared to notional 2019 result under new constituency boundaries. This means the Conservatives won 372 not
Seat change compared to notional 2019 result under new constituency boundaries. This means the Liberal Democrats won 8 n
Including 43 Labour Co-op MPs
In Northern Ireland, voter ID was already required at elections before it was introduced in the rest of the UK.
On 29 May 2024, the UK Parliamentary website stated there were 345 Conservative MPs and 205 Labour MPs. However it descr
Includes 24 MPs sponsored by the Co-operative Party, who are designated Labour and Co-operative.
At the time of the dissolution of Parliament on 30 May 2024, eight of the independent MPs had been elected as Conservati
Both of the Alba Party's MPs, Kenny MacAskill and Neale Hanvey, were elected for the Scottish National Party (SNP) befor
Known as the Brexit Party at the 2019 election.
In 2019-24, the seven members of Sinn Féin followed a policy of abstentionism. They did not swear into the house, and di
Deputy speaker Eleanor Laing (Con., Chair of Ways and Means) was on an extended leave of absence, and Roger Gale (Con.)
The Fixed-term Parliaments Act automatically scheduled general elections for the first Thursday in May of the fifth year
Debate took place in Gilbert Scott Building's Bute Hall.
Not a debate: Sunak and Starmer separately answered questions from the studio audience.
This debate was focused solely on the issues of immigration and law and order.
Not a debate: the party leaders were each separately asked questions by the studio audience.
Not a debate: the party leaders were both separately asked questions.