View source for 1997 United Kingdom general election

{{Short description|none}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox election
| election_name = 1997 United Kingdom general election
| country = United Kingdom
| type = parliamentary
| ongoing = no
| previous_election = 1992 United Kingdom general election
| previous_year = 1992
| outgoing_members = List of MPs elected in the 1992 United Kingdom general election
| next_election = 2001 United Kingdom general election
| next_year = 2001
| elected_members = List of MPs elected in the 1997 United Kingdom general election
| seats_for_election = All 659 seats to the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]]
| majority_seats = 330
| elected_mps = [[List of MPs elected in the 1997 United Kingdom general election|Members elected]]
| election_date = 1 May 1997
| turnout = 31,286,284<br>71.3% ({{decrease}}6.4 [[Percentage point|pp]])
| registered = 43,846,152<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/1997_registered_voters |title=1997 - Registered voters|date=27 February 2022 }}</ref>
| opinion_polls = Opinion polling for the 1997 United Kingdom general election
<!--      Labour      -->| image1 = {{CSS image crop|Image= Tony Blair 1997.jpg|bSize = 120|cWidth = 120|cHeight = 160|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}}
| leader1 = [[Tony Blair]]
| leader_since1 = [[1994 Labour Party leadership election|21 July 1994]]
| party1 = Labour Party (UK)
| leaders_seat1 = [[Sedgefield (UK Parliament constituency)|Sedgefield]]
| last_election1 = 271 seats, 34.4%
| seats_before1 = 273<sup>†</sup>
| seats1 = '''418'''{{sup|‡}}
| seat_change1 = {{increase}}146*<!-- Note: the boundaries changed from the previous election—146 is a nominal change figure from the seats the party would have won based on those boundaries. -->
| popular_vote1 = '''13,518,167'''
| percentage1 = '''43.2%'''
| swing1 = {{increase}}8.9 [[Percentage point|pp]]
<!--      Conservative     -->| image2 = {{CSS image crop|Image= Major PM full (cropped).jpg |bSize = 120|cWidth = 120|cHeight = 160|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}}
| leader2 = [[John Major]]
| leader_since2 = [[1990 Conservative Party leadership election|27 November 1990]]{{efn|Major resigned as [[Leader of the Conservative Party (UK)|Leader of the Conservative Party]] on 22 June 1995 to face critics in his party and government, and was re-elected as Leader on 4 July 1995 |name=|group=}}
| party2 = Conservative Party (UK)
| leaders_seat2 = [[Huntingdon (UK Parliament constituency)|Huntingdon]]
| last_election2 = 336 seats, 41.9%
| seats_before2 = 343<sup>†</sup>
| seats2 = 165
| seat_change2 = {{decrease}}178*<!-- Note: the boundaries changed from the previous election—178 is a nominal change figure from the seats the party would have won based on those boundaries. -->
| popular_vote2 = 9,591,085
| percentage2 = 30.6%
| swing2 = {{decrease}}11.3 [[Percentage point|pp]]
<!--      Liberal Democrats      -->| image3 = {{CSS image crop|Image=Paddy Ashdown (2005) (cropped).jpg|bSize = 120|cWidth = 120|cHeight = 160|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}}
| leader3 = [[Paddy Ashdown]]
| leader_since3 = [[1988 Social and Liberal Democrats leadership election|16 July 1988]]
| party3 = Liberal Democrats (UK)
| leaders_seat3 = [[Yeovil (UK Parliament constituency)|Yeovil]]
| last_election3 = 20 seats, 17.8%
| seats_before3 = 18<sup>†</sup>
| seats3 = 46
| seat_change3 = {{increase}}28*<!-- Note: the boundaries changed from the previous election—28 is a nominal change figure from the seats the party would have won based on those boundaries. -->
| popular_vote3 = 5,242,947
| percentage3 = 16.8%
| swing3 = {{decrease}}1.0 [[Percentage point|pp]]
| map_image = UK General Election, 1997.svg
| map_size = 200px
| map_caption = Colours denote the winning party, as shown in the main table of results.<br />* Indicates boundary change, so this is a nominal figure.<br /> <sup>†</sup> Notional 1992 results on new boundaries.<!-- DO NOT CHANGE TO NATIONAL. THIS IS NOT A MISTAKE. "Notional" means recalculated on the new boundaries. -->
| map2_image = File:House of Commons elected members, 1997.svg
| map2_size = 360px
| map2_caption = Composition of the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] after the election
| title = [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]]
| posttitle = Prime Minister after election
| before_election = [[John Major]]
| before_party = Conservative Party (UK)
| after_election = [[Tony Blair]]
| after_party = Labour Party (UK)
}}
The '''1997 United Kingdom general election''' was held on Thursday, 1 May 1997. The governing [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]] led by [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] [[John Major]] was defeated in a [[Landslide victory|landslide]] by the opposition [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] led by [[Tony Blair]], which achieved a 179-seat majority and a total of 418 seats.

This was the first victory for the Labour party in a general election in nearly 23 years, its previous one registering a majority of 3 seats in [[October 1974 United Kingdom general election|October 1974]] under the leadership of [[Harold Wilson]]. It was also Labour's first comprehensive victory over the Conservatives since the [[1966 United Kingdom general election|1966 election]], which had produced a near 100-seat majority. This election also marked Labour's highest vote share since the [[1970 United Kingdom general election|1970 election]] and its second highest total number of votes in history (the largest being the [[1951 United Kingdom general election|1951 election]]). On the other hand, it was an ignominious end to the 18-year government of the Conservatives, the longest continuous period of government of any party in modern British history. This election marked the third-largest defeat ever suffered by the Conservatives (the largest being the [[2024 United Kingdom general election|2024 election]]) with the party left with just 165 seats—it was left devoid of any MPs outside England, with only 17 MPs north of the Midlands, and with less than 20% of MPs in London. Additionally, the party also registered its lowest share of the vote since 1832 as well as its lowest vote in absolute terms since [[1929 United Kingdom general election|1929]]. This would be the last election until 2024 that the Conservatives decreased their share of the vote.

The political backdrop of campaigning focused on public opinion towards a change in government. Blair, as [[Leader of the Labour Party (UK)|Labour Leader]], focused on transforming his party through a more [[centrist]] policy platform, titled "[[New Labour]]", with promises of [[Devolution in the United Kingdom|devolution]] referendums for [[Scotland]] and [[Wales]], fiscal responsibility, and a decision to nominate more female politicians for election through the use of [[all-women shortlists]] from which to choose candidates. Major sought to rebuild public trust in the Conservatives following a series of scandals, including the events of [[Black Wednesday]] in 1992,<ref name=":0">{{cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/202525.stm |title=UK Politics - The Major Scandal Sheet |publisher=[[BBC News]]}}</ref> through campaigning on the strength of the economic recovery following the [[early 1990s recession]], but faced divisions within the party over the UK's membership of the [[European Union]].<ref name=":1">{{cite book |last=Miers |first=David |title=Britain in the European Union |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |location=London |date=2004 |pages=12–36 |isbn=978-1-4039-0452-2 |doi=10.1057/9780230523159_2}}</ref>

Opinion polls during campaigning showed strong support for Labour due to Blair's personal popularity,<ref name=":2">{{cite web |title=The Polls and the British General Election of 1997 |url=https://www.ipsos.com/ipsos-mori/en-uk/polls-and-british-general-election-1997 |website=www.ipsos.com |date=31 December 1997 |access-date=10 March 2021}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{cite news |title=Blair ahead in leadership ratings |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/news/vote2001/hi/english/opinion_polls/newsid_1306000/1306664.stm |publisher=BBC News |date=3 May 2001 |access-date=10 March 2021}}</ref> and Blair won a personal public endorsement from ''[[The Sun (United Kingdom)|The Sun]]'' newspaper two months before the vote.<ref name="Labour Sun Endorse"/> The final result of the election on 2 May 1997 revealed that Labour had won a landslide majority, making a net gain of 146 seats and winning 43.2% of the vote. 150 [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Members of Parliament]], including 133 Conservatives, [[List of MPs who lost their seat in the 1997 United Kingdom general election|lost their seats]]. The Conservatives, meanwhile, suffered defeat with a net loss of 178 seats, winning 30.7% of the vote. The [[Liberal Democrats (UK)|Liberal Democrats]] led by [[Paddy Ashdown]] made a net gain of 28 seats, winning 16.8% of the vote. Labour's victory, the largest achieved in its history and by any political party in British politics since the [[Second World War]], brought about the party's first of three consecutive terms in power (lasting a total of 13 years), with Blair as the newly appointed prime minister. The Liberal Democrats' success in the election, in part due to anti-Conservative [[tactical voting]],<ref name="LSEtactical">{{cite news |last1=Hermann |first1=Michael |last2=Munzert |first2=Simon |last3=Selb |first3=Peter |title=The conventional wisdom about tactical voting is wrong |url=https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpolicy/the-conventional-wisdom-about-tactical-voting-is-wrong/ |newspaper=British Politics and Policy at Lse |publisher=London School of Economics |access-date=7 July 2020 |date=4 November 2015}}</ref> strengthened both Ashdown's leadership and the party's position as a strong [[Minor party|third party]], having won the highest number of seats by any third party since [[1929 United Kingdom general election|1929]].

Although the Conservatives lost many ministers such as [[Michael Portillo]], [[Tony Newton, Baron Newton of Braintree|Tony Newton]], [[Malcolm Rifkind]], [[Ian Lang]] and [[William Waldegrave, Baron Waldegrave of North Hill|William Waldegrave]] and controversial MPs such as [[Neil Hamilton (politician)|Neil Hamilton]] and [[Jonathan Aitken]], some of the Conservative newcomers in this election were future Prime Minister [[Theresa May]], future Chancellor of the Exchequer [[Philip Hammond]], future Leader of the House [[Andrew Lansley]], and future Speaker [[John Bercow]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The Election. The Statistics. How the UK voted on May 1st. |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/politics97/news/05/0505/stats.shtml |access-date=8 July 2020 |website=BBC Politics 97 |publisher=BBC News}}</ref> Meanwhile, Labour newcomers included future Cabinet and Shadow Cabinet members [[Hazel Blears]], [[Ben Bradshaw]], [[Yvette Cooper]], [[Caroline Flint]], [[Barry Gardiner]], [[Alan Johnson]], [[Ruth Kelly]], [[John McDonnell]], [[Stephen Twigg]] and [[Rosie Winterton]], as well as future [[Leader of the Scottish Labour Party|Scottish Labour Leader]] [[Jim Murphy]] and future Speaker [[Lindsay Hoyle]]. The [[Blair Babe|election of 120 women, including 101 to the Labour benches]], came to be seen as a watershed moment in female political representation in the UK.<ref>{{cite web |last=Harman |first=Harriet |author-link=Harriet Harman |title=Labour's 1997 victory was a watershed for women but our gains are at risk |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/apr/10/labour-1997-victory-women-101-female-mps |work=The Guardian |date=10 April 2017 |access-date=8 July 2020}}</ref>

==Background==
The British economy had been in recession at the time of the [[1992 United Kingdom general election|1992 general election]], which the governing [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]] led by [[John Major]] had won. The recession ended within a year, but later events such as [[Black Wednesday]] severely tarnished the Conservative government's reputation for economic management. Meanwhile, the opposition [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] elected [[John Smith (Labour Party leader)|John Smith]] as its leader in [[1992 Labour Party leadership election|1992]] to succeed [[Neil Kinnock]]; however, Smith's death from a heart attack in 1994 led to [[1994 Labour Party leadership election|a leadership election]] which was won by [[Shadow Home Secretary]] [[Tony Blair]].

Blair sought to bring the party closer to the [[political centre]] of the era, including rebranding the party as "[[New Labour]]". He convinced the party's members and affiliated trades unions to support the removal of [[Clause IV]] from its constitution, which had committed it to the mass [[nationalisation]] of industry, and the party also reversed its policy on unilateral [[nuclear disarmament]]. The events of Black Wednesday also meant Labour—and [[shadow chancellor]] [[Gordon Brown]]—were perceived as offering more competent economic management than the Conservatives.

Labour's manifesto, ''[[New Labour, New Life for Britain]]'', was published in 1996 and outlined five key pledges:

* Class sizes to be cut to 30 or under for 5-, 6- and 7-year-olds by using money from the assisted places scheme.
* Fast track punishment for persistent young offenders, by halving the time from arrest to sentencing.
* Cut [[NHS]] waiting lists by treating an extra 100,000 patients as a first step by releasing £100 million saved from NHS red tape.
* Get 250,000 under-25-year-olds off benefit and into work by using money from a windfall levy on the privatised utilities.
* No rise in income tax rates, cut [[VAT]] on heating to 5%, and keeping inflation and interest rates as low as possible.

Disputes within the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] government over [[European Union]] issues, and a variety of "sleaze" allegations, severely affected the government's popularity. Despite the economic recovery and fall in unemployment in the four years leading up to the election, the rise in Conservative support was only marginal, with all of the major opinion polls showing Labour in a comfortable lead from late 1992 onwards.<ref name="bbc">{{cite news |title=1997: Labour landslide ends Tory rule |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/vote_2005/basics/4393323.stm |publisher=BBC News |date=15 April 2005 |access-date=28 March 2010}}</ref>

Following the 1992 general election, the Conservatives remained in government with 336 of the 651 House of Commons seats, but through a [[List of MPs elected in the 1992 United Kingdom general election#Progression of government majority and party totals|series of defections and by-election defeats]] the government gradually lost its absolute majority. By 1997, the Conservatives held only 324 seats and had not won a by-election since [[1989 Richmond (Yorks) by-election|Richmond in 1989]].

==Timing==
The previous Parliament first sat on 27 April 1992. The [[Parliament Act 1911]] required at the time for each Parliament to be dissolved on the fifth anniversary of its first sitting; therefore, the latest date the dissolution and the summoning of the next parliament could have been held on was 27 April 1997.

The [[Representation of the People Act 1985|1985 amendment]] of the [[Representation of the People Act 1983]] required that the election must take place on the eleventh [[working day]] after the deadline for nomination papers, which in turn must be no more than six working days after the next parliament was summoned.

Therefore, the latest date the election could have been held on was 22 May 1997 (which happened to be a Thursday). British elections (and [[referendum]]s) have been held on Thursdays by convention since the 1930s, but can be held on other working days.

==Campaign==
Major called the election on Monday 17 March 1997, ensuring the formal campaign would be unusually long, at six weeks (Parliament was [[Dissolution of parliament|dissolved]] on 8 April).<ref>{{cite web
|url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/lords/1997/mar/17/dissolution-of-parliament |title=House of Lords Debates vol 579 cc653-4: Dissolution of Parliament |work=[[Hansard|Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)]] |date=17 March 1997 |access-date=21 June 2010}}</ref> The election was scheduled for 1 May, to coincide with the [[1997 United Kingdom local elections|local elections]] on the same day. This set a precedent, as the three subsequent general elections were also held alongside the May local elections.

The Conservatives argued that a long campaign would expose Labour and allow the Conservative message to be heard. However, Major was accused of arranging an early dissolution to protect [[Neil Hamilton (politician)|Neil Hamilton]] from a [[Cash-for-questions affair|pending parliamentary report]] into his conduct: a report that Major had earlier guaranteed would be published before the election.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hencke |first=David |date=19 March 1997 |title=Fury as sleaze report buried |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/1997/mar/19/conservatives.uk |access-date=14 May 2023 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

In March 1997, soon after the election was called, [[Asda]] introduced a range of election-themed beers, these being "Major's Mild", "Tony's Tipple" and "Ashdown's Ale".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/advertising-promotion-ads-contract-election-fever/60527 |title=Advertising & Promotion: Ads contract election fever|work=Campaign|date=20 March 1997 |access-date=9 April 2017}}</ref>

The political backdrop of campaigning focused on public opinion towards a change in government. Blair, as Labour leader, focused on transforming his party through a more [[centrist]] policy platform, titled "[[New Labour]]", with promises of [[Devolution in the United Kingdom|devolution]] referendums for [[Scotland]] and [[Wales]], fiscal responsibility, and a decision to nominate more female politicians for election through the use of [[all-women shortlists]] from which to choose candidates. Major sought to rebuild public trust in the Conservatives following a series of scandals, including the events of [[Black Wednesday]] in 1992,<ref name=":0" /> through campaigning on the strength of the economic recovery following the [[early 1990s recession]], but faced divisions within the party over the UK's membership of the [[European Union]].<ref name=":1" />

Opinion polls during campaigning showed strong support for Labour due to Blair's personal popularity,<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /> and Blair won a personal public endorsement from ''[[The Sun (United Kingdom)|The Sun]]'' newspaper two months before the vote.<ref name="Labour Sun Endorse" />

===Conservative campaign===
Major hoped that a long campaign would expose Labour's "hollowness" and the Conservative campaign emphasised stability, as did its manifesto title 'You can only be sure with the Conservatives'.{{sfn|Snowdon|2010|p=4}} However, the campaign was beset by deep-set problems, such as the rise of [[James Goldsmith]]'s [[Referendum Party]] which advocated a referendum on continued membership of the European Union. The party threatened to take away many right-leaning voters from the Conservatives. Furthermore, about 200 candidates broke with official Conservative policy to oppose British membership of the [[single European currency]].<ref name="Single currency 1997">Travis, Alan (17 April 1997). "Rebels' seven-year march". ''The Guardian'' (London).</ref> Major fought back, saying: "Whether you agree with me or disagree with me; like me or loathe me, don't bind my hands when I am negotiating on behalf of the British nation." The moment is remembered as one of the defining, and most surreal, moments of the election.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/election-97--john-major-takes-on-the-tories-1267550.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/election-97--john-major-takes-on-the-tories-1267550.html |archive-date=1 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |title=Election '97: John Major takes on the Tories |last=Bevins |first=Anthony |date=17 April 1997 |work=The Independent |access-date=19 December 2015 }}{{cbignore}}</ref>{{sfn|Snowdon|2010|p=4}}

Meanwhile, there was also division amongst the Conservative cabinet, with Chancellor [[Kenneth Clarke]] describing the views of Home Secretary [[Michael Howard]] on Europe as "paranoid and xenophobic nonsense". The Conservatives also struggled to come up with a definitive theme to attack Labour, with some strategists arguing for an approach which castigated Labour for "stealing Tory clothes" (copying their positions), with others making the case for a more confrontational approach, stating that "New Labour" was just a façade for "old Labour".

The [[New Labour, New Danger]] poster, which depicted Tony Blair with demon eyes, was an example of the latter strategy. Major veered between the two approaches, which left [[Conservative Central Office]] staff frustrated. As [[Andrew Cooper, Baron Cooper of Windrush|Andrew Cooper]] explained: "We repeatedly tried and failed to get him to understand that you couldn't say that they were dangerous and copying you at the same time."{{sfn|Snowdon|2010|p=35}} In any case, the campaign failed to gain much traction, and the Conservatives went down to a landslide defeat at the polls.

===Labour campaign===
Labour ran a slick campaign that emphasised the splits within the Conservative government and argued that the country needed a more centrist administration. It thus successfully picked up dissatisfied Conservative voters, particularly moderate and suburban ones. Tony Blair, who was personally highly popular, was very much the centrepiece of the campaign and proved a highly effective campaigner.

The Labour campaign was reminiscent of those of [[Bill Clinton]] for the US presidency in [[Bill Clinton 1992 presidential campaign|1992]] and [[Bill Clinton 1996 presidential campaign|1996]], focusing on centrist themes as well as adopting policies more commonly associated with the right, such as cracking down on crime and fiscal responsibility. The influence of political "spin" came into great effect for Labour at this point, as media centric figures such as [[Alastair Campbell]] and [[Peter Mandelson]] provided a clear cut campaign, and establishing a relatively new political brand [[New Labour]] with enviable success. In this election Labour adopted the theme [[Things Can Only Get Better (D:Ream song)|Things Can Only Get Better]] in their campaign and advertising.<ref>{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240209111441/https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/new-labour-brand-10-years/653501 |website=campaignlive.co.uk |archive-date=9 February 2024 |url-status=live |title=The New Labour brand 10 years on |access-date=9 February 2024 |first=David |last=Tiltman |date=1 May 2007 |quote=In keeping with the New Labour message, the party's 1997 campaign attacked the economic record of the Tories following 1992's Black Wednesday and promised national renewal, memorably using D:Ream's song Things Can Only Get Better. |url=https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/new-labour-brand-10-years/653501}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/jul/21/new-labour-1997-rave-culture-ed-gillett-book-extract |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240209115505/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/jul/21/new-labour-1997-rave-culture-ed-gillett-book-extract |archive-date=9 February 2024 |url-status=live |access-date=9 February 2024 |title='From the dancefloor to the ballot box': how house music helped Labour win a landslide in 1997 |first=Ed |last=Gillett |date=22 July 2023 |work=[[The Guardian]] |quote=First released in 1993, but only lightly grazing the Top 40 on its initial foray into the charts, a poppier remix of D:Ream’s Things Can Only Get Better spent four weeks at No 1 the following January. Two years on from that, it was co-opted for the launch of Labour’s five “pre-manifesto” pledges, written largely by Tony Blair himself. Something in the song’s message clearly resonated with Labour apparatchiks, or tested well with the party’s army of focus groups: by the time the election came around in May 1997, Things Can Only Get Better had displaced The Red Flag as New Labour’s election anthem, the feelgood sonic backdrop to rallies, photo opportunities and campaign adverts alike.}}</ref>

===Liberal Democrat campaign===
The Liberal Democrats had suffered a disappointing performance in 1992, but they were very much strengthened in 1997 due in part to potential tactical voting between Labour and Lib Dem supporters in Conservative marginal constituencies, particularly in the south of England – which explains why while given their share of the vote decreased, their number of seats nearly doubled.<ref name="LSEtactical" /> The Lib Dems promised to increase education funding paid for by a 1p increase in income tax.

==Endorsements==
*In a sign of the change of direction which New Labour represented, they were endorsed by ''[[The Sun (United Kingdom)|The Sun]]'',<ref name="Labour Sun Endorse">{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/1997/mar/18/past.roygreenslade|title=It's the Sun wot's switched sides to back Blair|first=Roy|last=Greenslade|date=18 March 1997|work=The Guardian}}</ref> as well as the more left-leaning newspapers the ''[[Daily Mirror]]'', ''[[The Independent]]'' and ''[[The Guardian]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2010/may/04/general-election-newspaper-support|title=Newspaper support in UK general elections|first=Katy|last=Stoddard|date=4 May 2010|website=The Guardian}}</ref>
*The Conservatives were endorsed by the ''[[Daily Mail]]'', the ''[[Daily Express]]'' and ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]''.
*''[[The Times]]'' did not endorse a specific party, but instead encouraged voters to support individual candidates "against the further integration of the [[European Union]]".<ref>{{cite news|title = Principle Not Party|date = 29 April 1997|newspaper = [[The Times]]|page = 23}}</ref>

== Opinion polling ==
{{main|Opinion polling for the 1997 United Kingdom general election}}
{{UK general election opinion polling|1987|1992|1997|2001|2005}}
[[File:Opinion polls United Kingdom 1997.svg|thumb|1000px|centre|{{columns-list|colwidth=18em|
 {{Legend-line|#DC241f solid 5px|Labour}}
 {{Legend-line|#0087DC solid 5px|Conservatives}}
 {{Legend-line|#FAA61A solid 5px|Liberal Democrats}}
}}]]

==Notional 1992 results==
{{See also|Fourth periodic review of Westminster constituencies}}
[[File:1997_UK_Election_Notional_Result.png|right|thumb| The notional results of the 1992 election, as shown on a map of the 1997 constituencies.]]<!-- THIS IS NOT A TYPO. "Notional" means recalculated on the new boundaries. -->
The election was fought under new boundaries, with a net increase of eight seats compared to the 1992 election (651 to 659). Changes listed here are from the notional 1992 result, had it been fought on the boundaries established in 1997. These [[notional results]] were calculated by [[Colin Rallings]] and [[Michael Thrasher]] and were used by all media organisations at the time.

{{Election summary begin| title = Notional UK General Election 1992}}
{{Election summary party|
  |party      = Labour Party (UK)
  |seats      = 273
  |net        = +2
  |gain       = 17
  |loss       = 15
  |votes      = 11,560,484
  |votes %    = 34.4
  |seats %    = 41.6
  |plus/minus =

}}
{{Election summary party|
  |party      = Conservative Party (UK)
  |seats      = 343
  |net        = +7
  |gain       = 28
  |loss       = 21
  |votes      = 14,093,007
  |votes %    = 41.9
  |seats %    = 52.1
  |plus/minus =

}}

{{Election summary party|
  |party      = Liberal Democrats (UK)
  |seats      = 18
  |gain       = 0
  |loss       = 2
  |net        = &minus;2
  |votes      = 5,999,384
  |votes %    = 17.8
  |seats %    = 2.7
  |plus/minus =

}}
{{Election summary party|
  |party      = Other parties
  |seats      = 25
  |gain       = 1
  |loss       = 0
  |net        = +1
  |votes      = 
  |votes %    = 5.9
  |seats %    = 3.6
  |plus/minus =

}}
|}

==Results==
{{Main|Results of the 1997 United Kingdom general election|Results of the 1997 United Kingdom general election by constituency}}
[[File:1997 UK General Election Constituencies.svg|thumb|Equal-area projection of constituencies]]
[[File:1997 UK general election, countries and regions.svg|thumb|400px|Result by countries and English regions]]
Labour won a [[landslide victory]] with its largest parliamentary majority (179) to date. On the BBC's election night programme [[Anthony King (political scientist)|Professor Anthony King]] described the result of the exit poll, which accurately predicted a Labour landslide, as being akin to "an asteroid hitting the planet and destroying practically all life on Earth". After years of trying, Labour had convinced the electorate that they would usher in a new age of prosperity—their policies, organisation and tone of optimism slotting perfectly into place.

Labour's victory was largely credited to the charisma of [[Tony Blair]],<ref name="BP">{{cite journal |author1=Ben Pimlott |title=New Labour, New Era? |journal=[[The Political Quarterly]] |date=October 1997 |volume=68 |issue=4 |pages=325–334|doi=10.1111/1467-923X.00099 }}</ref> as well as a Labour public relations machine managed by [[Alastair Campbell]] and [[Peter Mandelson]]. Between the [[1992 United Kingdom general election|1992 election]] and the 1997 election there had also been major steps to "modernise" the party, including scrapping [[Clause IV]] that had committed the party to extending public ownership of industry. Labour had suddenly seized the middle ground of the political spectrum, attracting voters much further to the right than their traditional working class or left wing support. In the early hours of 2 May 1997 a party was held at the [[Royal Festival Hall]], in which Blair stated that "a new dawn has broken, has it not?"

The election was a crushing defeat for the Conservatives, with the party having its lowest percentage share of the popular vote since [[1832 United Kingdom general election|1832]] under the [[Duke of Wellington]]'s leadership, being [[Electoral wipeout|wiped out]] in Scotland and [[Wales]]. A number of prominent Conservative MPs [[List of MPs who lost their seat in the 1997 United Kingdom general election|lost their seats]] in the election, including [[Michael Portillo]], [[Malcolm Rifkind]], [[Edwina Currie]], [[David Mellor]], [[Neil Hamilton (politician)|Neil Hamilton]] and [[Norman Lamont]]. Such was the extent of Conservative losses at the election that [[Cecil Parkinson]], speaking on the BBC's election night programme, joked upon the Conservatives winning their second seat that he was pleased that the subsequent election for the leadership would be contested.

The Liberal Democrats stood on a more left-wing manifesto than Labour,<ref name=BP/><ref>{{cite book |author1=Geoffrey Evans |author2=Pippa Norris |author1-link=Geoff Evans (political scientist) |author2-link=Pippa Norris |title=Critical elections: British parties and voters in long-term perspective |date=1999 |publisher=[[SAGE Publishing]] |pages=259–271 |chapter=14 - Conclusion: Was 1997 a Critical Election?}}</ref> and more than doubled their number of seats thanks to the use of tactical voting against the Conservatives.<ref name="LSEtactical"/> Although their share of the vote fell slightly, their total of 46 MPs was the highest for any UK Liberal party since [[David Lloyd George]] led the party to 59 seats in [[1929 United Kingdom general election|1929]].

The Referendum Party, which sought a [[referendum]] on the United Kingdom's relationship with the [[European Union]], came fourth in terms of votes with 800,000 votes and won no seats in parliament.<ref name="1997-factsheet"/>

The six parties with the next highest votes stood only in either [[Scotland]], Northern Ireland or [[Wales]]; in order, they were the [[Scottish National Party]], the [[Ulster Unionist Party]], the [[Social Democratic and Labour Party]], [[Plaid Cymru]], [[Sinn Féin]], and the [[Democratic Unionist Party]].

In the previously safe seat of [[Tatton (UK Parliament constituency)|Tatton]], where incumbent Conservative MP [[Neil Hamilton (politician)|Neil Hamilton]] was facing charges of having taken [[cash for questions]], the Labour and Liberal Democrat parties decided not to field candidates in order that an independent candidate, [[Martin Bell]], would have a better chance of winning the seat, which he did with a [[Tatton in the 1997 general election|comfortable margin]].

The result declared for the constituency of [[Winchester (UK Parliament constituency)|Winchester]] showed a margin of victory of just two votes for the Liberal Democrats. The defeated Conservative candidate mounted a successful legal challenge to the result on the grounds that errors by election officials (failures to stamp certain votes) had changed the result; the court ruled the result invalid and ordered a [[1997 Winchester by-election|by-election]] on 20 November which was won by the Liberal Democrats with a much larger majority, causing much recrimination in the Conservative Party about the decision to challenge the original result in the first place.

This election saw a doubling of the number of women in parliament, from 60 elected in 1992 to 120 elected in 1997.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kelly |first1=Richard |title=Women in the House of Commons: Background Paper |url=https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn06651/ |website=House of Commons Library |publisher=UK Parliament |access-date=8 July 2020 |date=21 August 2018}}</ref> 101 of them (controversially described as [[Blair Babe]]s) were on the Labour benches,<ref>{{cite web |author1=Harriet Harman |author1-link=Harriet Harman |title=Labour's 1997 victory was a watershed for women – but our gains are at risk |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/apr/10/labour-1997-victory-women-101-female-mps |website=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=20 April 2022 |date=10 April 2017}}</ref> a number driven by the Labour Party's 1993 policy (ruled illegally discriminatory in 1996) of [[all-women shortlist]]s. This election has therefore been widely seen as a watershed moment for representation of women in the UK.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Flint |first1=Caroline |last2=Spelman |first2=Caroline |title=How the Class of '97 Changed Westminster |url=https://www.politicshome.com/thehouse/article/how-the-class-of-97-changed-westminster |website=Politics Home - The House |publisher=Politics Home |access-date=8 July 2020 |date=4 May 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Kirk |first1=Ashley |last2=Scott |first2=Patrick |title=General election 2017 sees record number of women candidates |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/politics/general-election-2017-sees-record-level-female-candidates/ |work=The Telegraph |access-date=8 July 2020 |date=17 June 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Blaxill |first1=Luke |last2=Beelen |first2=Kaspar |title=Women in Parliament since 1945: have they changed the debate? |journal=History & Policy - Policy Papers |date=25 July 2016 |url=http://www.historyandpolicy.org/policy-papers/papers/women-in-parliament-since-1945-have-they-changed-the-debate |access-date=8 July 2020 |quote=We suggest that 1997 was significant because it helped normalise a large female presence at Westminster which absolved women MPs of the obligation to act as 'token women' and thus as spokeswomen for their sex.}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Childs |first1=Sarah |title=The new labour women MPs in the 1997 British parliament: issues of recruitment and representation |journal=Women's History Review |year=2000 |volume=9 |issue=1 |pages=55–73 |doi=10.1080/09612020000200228 |publisher=Routledge (Taylor & Francis) |issn=1747-583X |quote=The research suggests that women MPs consider that women’s presence has the potential to transform the parliamentary political agenda and style.|doi-access=free }}</ref>

This election marked the start of Labour government for the next 13 years, lasting until the formation of the [[Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition]] in 2010.

[[File:1997 UK parliament.svg |center|300px]]
<!-- this section is transcluded on Electoral history of John Major -->:
<!-- this section is transcluded on Electoral history of Tony Blair -->:
<section begin="UK General Election 1997"/>
{{Election summary begin with leaders |title=1997 United Kingdom general election<ref name="1997-factsheet">{{cite web |url=https://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-information-office/m15.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-information-office/m15.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022 |url-status=live |title=General Election Results, 1 May 1997 |department=Factsheet No. 68 |last=Morgan |first=Bryn |date=February 1999 |publisher=[[House of Commons Information Office]] |access-date=1 April 2019}}</ref>}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Labour Party (UK)
| leader     = [[Tony Blair]]
| candidates = 639{{efn| Includes 26 [[Co-operative Party]] candidates, as part of the [[Labour and Co-operative Party|Labour-Co-op]] alliance |name=|group=}}
| seats      = 418{{efn| Includes 26 [[Co-operative Party]] MPs, as part of the [[Labour and Co-operative Party|Labour-Co-op]] alliance |name=|group=}}
| gain       = 146
| loss       = 1
| net        = +145{{efn| Includes +12 [[Co-operative Party]] MPs, as part of the [[Labour and Co-operative Party|Labour-Co-op]] alliance |name=|group=}}
| votes      = 13,518,167{{efn| Includes 654,203 for the [[Co-operative Party]], as part of the [[Labour and Co-operative Party|Labour-Co-op]] alliance |name=|group=}}
| votes %    = 43.2{{efn| Includes 2.1% for the [[Co-operative Party]], as part of the [[Labour and Co-operative Party|Labour-Co-op]] alliance |name=|group=}}
| seats %    = 63.4{{efn| Includes 3.9% for the [[Co-operative Party]], as part of the [[Labour and Co-operative Party|Labour-Co-op]] alliance |name=|group=}}
| plus/minus = +8.8{{efn| Includes +0.6% for the [[Co-operative Party]], as part of the [[Labour and Co-operative Party|Labour-Co-op]] alliance |name=|group=}}
| government = yes
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Conservative Party (UK)
| leader     = [[John Major]]
| candidates = 648
| seats      = 165
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 178
| net        = –178
| votes      = 9,591,085
| votes %    = 30.7
| seats %    = 25.0
| plus/minus = –11.2
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Liberal Democrats (UK)
| leader     = [[Paddy Ashdown]]
| candidates = 639
| seats      = 46
| gain       = 30
| loss       = 2
| net        = +28
| votes      = 5,242,947
| votes %    = 16.8
| seats %    = 7.0
| plus/minus = –1.0
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Referendum Party
| leader     = [[James Goldsmith]]
| candidates = 547
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 811,849
| votes %    = 2.6
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Scottish National Party
| leader     = [[Alex Salmond]]
| candidates = 72
| seats      = 6
| gain       = 3
| loss       = 0
| net        = +3
| votes      = 621,550
| votes %    = 2.0
| seats %    = 0.9
| plus/minus = +0.1
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Ulster Unionist Party
| leader     = [[David Trimble]]
| candidates = 16
| seats      = 10
| gain       = [[West Tyrone (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| loss       = 0
| net        = +1
| votes      = 258,349
| votes %    = 0.8
| seats %    = 1.5
| plus/minus = 0.0
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Social Democratic and Labour Party
| leader     = [[John Hume]]
| candidates = 18
| seats      = 3
| gain       = 0
| loss       = [[Belfast West (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| net        = –1
| votes      = 190,814
| votes %    = 0.6
| seats %    = 0.5
| plus/minus = +0.1
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Plaid Cymru
| leader     = [[Dafydd Wigley]]
| candidates = 40
| seats      = 4
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 161,030
| votes %    = 0.5
| seats %    = 0.6
| plus/minus = 0.0
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Sinn Féin
| leader     = [[Gerry Adams]]
| candidates = 17
| seats      = 2
| gain       = 2
| loss       = 0
| net        = +2
| votes      = 126,921
| votes %    = 0.4
| seats %    = 0.3
| plus/minus = 0.0
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Democratic Unionist Party
| leader     = [[Ian Paisley]]
| candidates = 9
| seats      = 2
| gain       = 0
| loss       = [[Mid Ulster (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| net        = –1
| votes      = 107,348
| votes %    = 0.3
| seats %    = 0.3
| plus/minus = 0.0
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = UK Independence Party
| leader     = [[Alan Sked]]
| candidates = 193
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 105,722
| votes %    = 0.3
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Independent politician
| leader     = ''N/A''
| candidates = 25
| seats      = [[Tatton (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| gain       = [[Tatton (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| loss       = 0
| net        = +1
| votes      = 64,482
| votes %    = 0.2
| seats %    = 0.2
| plus/minus = 0.0
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
| leader     = [[John Alderdice]]
| candidates = 17
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 62,972
| votes %    = 0.2
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = 0.0
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Green Party of England and Wales
| leader     = [[Peg Alexander]] and [[David Taylor (Green politician)|David Taylor]]
| candidates = 89
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 61,731
| votes %    = 0.2
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = –0.2
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Socialist Labour Party (UK)
| leader     = [[Arthur Scargill]]
| candidates = 64
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 52,109
| votes %    = 0.2
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Liberal Party (UK, 1989)
| leader     = [[Michael Meadowcroft]]
| candidates = 53
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 45,166
| votes %    = 0.1
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = –0.1
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = British National Party
| leader     = [[John Tyndall (far-right activist)|John Tyndall]]
| candidates = 57
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 35,832
| votes %    = 0.1
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = 0.0
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Natural Law Party
| leader     = Geoffrey Clements
| candidates = 197
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 30,604
| votes %    = 0.1
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = –0.1
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom)
| leader     = [[Betty Boothroyd]]
| candidates = [[West Bromwich West (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| seats      = [[West Bromwich West (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| gain       = [[West Bromwich West (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 23,969
| votes %    = 0.1
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus =
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = ProLife Alliance
| leader     = Bruno Quintavalle
| candidates = 56
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 19,332
| votes %    = 0.1
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = UK Unionist Party
| leader     = [[Robert McCartney (Northern Irish politician)|Robert McCartney]]
| candidates = [[North Down (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| seats      = [[North Down (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| gain       = [[North Down (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| loss       = 0
| net        = +1
| votes      = 12,817
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 0.2
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Progressive Unionist Party
| leader     = [[Hugh Smyth]]
| candidates = 3
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 10,928
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = National Democrats (UK)
| leader     = [[Ian Anderson (British politician)|Ian Anderson]]
| candidates = 21
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 10,829
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Socialist Party (England and Wales)
| leader     = [[Peter Taaffe]]
| candidates = 
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 9,906
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Scottish Socialist Alliance
| leader     = [[Tommy Sheridan]]
| candidates = 16
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 9,740
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Independent politician|Independent Labour
| leader     = ''N/A''
| candidates = 4
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 9,233
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = – 0.1
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Independent Conservative
| leader     = ''N/A''
| candidates = 4
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 8,608
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = –0.1
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Official Monster Raving Loony Party
| leader     = [[Screaming Lord Sutch]]
| candidates = 24
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 7,906
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = –0.1
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Make Politicians History|Vote For Yourself Rainbow Dream Ticket
| leader     = [[Rainbow George Weiss]]
| candidates = 29
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 3,745
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Northern Ireland Women's Coalition
| leader     = [[Monica McWilliams]] and [[Pearl Sagar]]
| candidates = 3
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 3,024
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Workers' Party (Ireland)
| leader     = [[Tom French (Northern Ireland politician)|Tom French]]
| candidates = 8
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 2,766
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = –0.1
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = National Front (United Kingdom)
| leader     = John McAuley
| candidates = 6
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 2,716
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Cannabis Law Reform|Legalise Cannabis Alliance
| leader     = [[Howard Marks]]
| candidates = 4
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 2,085
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Socialist People's Party (Furness)|People's Labour Party (UK)
| leader     = Jim Hamezian
| candidates = [[Barrow and Furness (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 1,995
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Mebyon Kernow
| leader     = [[Loveday Jenkin]]
| candidates = 4
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 1,906
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Scottish Greens
| leader     = [[Robin Harper]]
| candidates = 5
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 1,721
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = 
}}
{{Election summary with leaders
| party      = [[Conservatives Against the Single Currency|Conservative Anti-Euro]]
| leader     = Christopher Story
| candidates = [[Beaconsfield (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 1,434
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Socialist Party of Great Britain
| leader     = ''None''
| candidates = 5
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 1,359
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary with leaders
| party      = Community Representative
| leader     = Ralph Knight
| candidates = [[Harwich (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 1,290
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Neighborhood association|Residents Association
| leader     = 
| candidates = [[Welwyn Hatfield (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 1,263
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Social Democratic Party (UK, 1990–present)|Social Democratic Party (UK, 1990)
| leader     = John Bates
| candidates = 2
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 1,246
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = –0.1
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Workers Revolutionary Party (UK)
| leader     = Sheila Torrance
| candidates = 9
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 1,178
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary with leaders
| party      = Real Labour
| leader     = ''N/A''
| candidates = [[Bethnal Green and Bow (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 1,117
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus = ''N/A''
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Independent Democrat|Independent Democratic
| leader     = ''N/A''
| candidates = 
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 982
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus =
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Independent politician|Independent Liberal Democrat
| leader     = ''N/A''
| candidates = 
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 890
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus =
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Communist Party of Britain
| leader     = [[Mike Hicks (trade unionist)|Mike Hicks]]
| candidates = 3
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 639
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus =
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Independent politician|Independent Green
| leader     = ''N/A''
| candidates = [[West Derbyshire (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 593
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus =
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Green Party Northern Ireland
| leader     = 
| candidates = [[Belfast North (UK Parliament constituency)|1]]
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 539
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus =
}}
{{Election summary party with leaders
| party      = Socialist Equality Party (UK)
| leader     = Davy Hyland
| candidates = 3
| seats      = 0
| gain       = 0
| loss       = 0
| net        = 0
| votes      = 505
| votes %    = 0.0
| seats %    = 
| plus/minus =
}}

|}
{{italic div|All parties with more than 500 votes shown. Labour total includes [[New Labour]] and "Labour Time for Change" candidates; Conservative total includes candidates in Northern Ireland (excluded in some lists) and "Loyal Conservative" candidate.{{citation needed|date=February 2018}}

The [[Ulster Popular Unionist Party|Popular Unionist]] MP elected in 1992 died in 1995, and the party folded shortly afterwards.

There was no incumbent Speaker in the 1992 election.}}

{| class="wikitable" style="width:630px"

|-
! Government's new majority
! 179

|-
| Total votes cast
| 31,286,284

|-
| Turnout
| 71.3%

|}<section end="UK General Election 1997"/>

[[File:Results of the UK General Election, 1997.svg|thumb|right|200px|alt=Ring charts of the election results showing popular vote against seats won, coloured in party colours|Seats won in the election (outer ring) against number of votes (inner ring).]]

{{bar box
| title=Popular vote
| titlebar=#ddd
| width=600px
| barwidth=410px
| bars=
{{bar percent|'''Labour'''|{{party color|Labour Party (UK)}}|43.2}}
{{bar percent|Conservative|{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}|30.7}}
{{bar percent|Liberal Democrat|{{party color|Liberal Democrats (UK)}}|16.8}}
{{bar percent|Referendum|{{party color|Referendum Party}}|2.6}}
{{bar percent|Scottish National|{{party color|Scottish National Party}}|2.0}}
{{bar percent|Others|#777777|1.9}}
}}
{{bar box
| title=Parliamentary seats
| titlebar=#ddd
| width=600px
| barwidth=410px
| bars=
{{bar percent|'''Labour'''|{{party color|Labour Party (UK)}}|63.4}}
{{bar percent|Conservative|{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}|25.0}}
{{bar percent|Liberal Democrat|{{party color|Liberal Democrats (UK)}}|7.0}}
{{bar percent|Scottish National|{{party color|Scottish National Party}}|0.9}}
{{bar percent|Ulster Unionist|{{party color|Ulster Unionist Party}}|1.5}}
{{bar percent|Others|#777777|2.1}}
}}
[[File:1997 UK General Election Gallagher Index.png|right|thumb|The disproportionality of the house of parliament in the 1997 election was 16.71 according to the [[Gallagher Index]], mainly between Labour and the Liberal Democrats.]]

=== Results by constituent country ===
{| class="wikitable"
!
!LAB
!CON
!LD
!SNP
!PC
!NI parties
!Others
!Total

|-
|[[1997 United Kingdom general election in England|England]]
| 328
| 165
| 34
| -
| -
| -
| 2
| 529

|-
|[[1997 United Kingdom general election in Wales|Wales]]
| 34
| -
| 2
| -
| 4
| -
| -
| 40

|-
|[[1997 United Kingdom general election in Scotland|Scotland]]
| 56
| -
| 10
| 6
| -
| -
| -
| 72

|-
|[[1997 United Kingdom general election in Northern Ireland|Northern Ireland]]
| -
| -
| -
| -
| -
| 18
| -
| 18

|-
| Total
| 419
| 165
| 46
| 6
| 4
| 18
| 2 (inc Speaker)
| 659

|}

=== Results by voter characteristics ===
{| class="wikitable"
|+Ethnic group voting intention<ref>{{Cite book |last=Saggar |first=Shamit |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/jj.15976631 |title=Race and representation: Electoral politics and ethnic pluralism in Britain |date=2000 |publisher=Manchester University Press}}</ref>
! rowspan="2" |Ethnic group
! colspan="4" |Party
|-
!Labour
!Conservative
!SDP/Lib
!Other
|-
|Ethnic minority (non-White)
|78%
|17%
|n/a
|5%
|-
|Asian<ref name=":02">{{Cite web |title=Race And British Electoral Politics |url=https://www.routledge.com/Race-And-British-Electoral-Politics/Saggar/p/book/9781857288308 |access-date=2025-10-07 |website=Routledge & CRC Press |language=en}}</ref>
|70%
|25%
|4%
|1%
|-
|Afro-Caribbean<ref name=":02" />
|86%
|8%
|4%
|1%
|}

==Defeated MPs==

=== MPs who lost their seats ===
{{Main|List of MPs who lost their seat in the 1997 United Kingdom general election}}

==Post-election events==
The poor results for the Conservative Party led to infighting, with the [[One-nation conservatism|One Nation]] group, [[Tory Reform Group]], and right-wing [[Maastricht Rebels]] blaming each other for the defeat. Party chairman [[Brian Mawhinney]] said on the night of the election that defeat was due to disillusionment with 18 years of Conservative rule. [[John Major]] resigned as party leader, saying "When the curtain falls, it is time to get off the stage".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.totalpolitics.com/articles/interview/major-players-1990-generation|title=Major players: The 1990 generation|date=3 January 2014|website=TotalPolitics.com|language=en|access-date=29 March 2020}}</ref>

Following the defeat, the Conservatives began their longest continuous spell in [[His Majesty's Most Loyal Opposition|opposition]] in the history of the present day (post–[[Tamworth Manifesto]]) Conservative Party – and indeed the longest such spell for any incarnation of the [[Tories (British political party)|Tories]]/Conservatives since the 1760s and the end of the [[Whigs (British political party)#Whig Supremacy|Whig Supremacy]] under Kings [[George I of Great Britain|George I]] and [[George II of Great Britain|George II]] – lasting 13 years, including the whole of the 2000s.<ref>{{cite news|last=Kettle|first=Martin|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2010/may/13/cameron-clegg-liberal-bold-risk|title=Tories rule: but liberal Tories with a New Labour legacy|date=13 May 2010|work=The Guardian|access-date=29 March 2020|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Throughout this period, their representation in the Commons remained consistently below 200 MPs.

Meanwhile, [[Paddy Ashdown|Paddy Ashdown's]] continued leadership of the Liberal Democrats was assured, and they were felt to be in a position to build positively as a strong third party into the new millennium,<ref>{{cite web |title=BBC Politics 97 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/politics97/background/pastelec/ge97lib.shtml |website=BBC Politics 97 |publisher=BBC News |access-date=29 March 2020}}</ref> culminating in their sharing power in the [[Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition agreement|2010 coalition with the Conservatives]].

==Internet coverage==
With the huge rise in internet use since the previous general election, [[BBC News]] created a special website – BBC Politics 97 – covering the election.<ref name="bbcPolitics97">{{cite web |title=BBC Politics 97 |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/politics97/ |website=BBC Politics 97 |publisher=BBC News |access-date=8 July 2020 |year=1997}}</ref> This site was an experiment for the efficiency of [[BBC News Online|an online news service]] which was due for launch later in the year.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.freshnetworks.com/blog/2008/06/major-events-influenced-bbcs-news-online |title=Major events influenced BBC's news online &#124; FreshNetworks blog |publisher=Freshnetworks.com |date=5 June 2008 |access-date=9 December 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101228193301/http://www.freshnetworks.com/blog/2008/06/major-events-influenced-bbcs-news-online/ |archive-date=28 December 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[List of MPs elected in the 1997 United Kingdom general election]]
*[[1997 United Kingdom general election in England]]
*[[1997 United Kingdom general election in Scotland]]
*[[1997 United Kingdom general election in Northern Ireland]]
*[[1997 United Kingdom general election in Wales]]
*[[1997 United Kingdom local elections]]
*[[1990s in political history]]

==Footnotes==
{{reflist|group=n}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Butler, David and Dennis Kavanagh. ''The British General Election of 1997'' (1997), the standard scholarly study
* {{cite book | last = Snowdon | first = Peter | author-link = Peter Snowdon | title = Back from the Brink: The Extraordinary Fall and Rise of the Conservative Party | location = London |publisher= [[HarperCollins]] | year = 2010 |orig-year = 2010 | isbn = 978-0-00-730884-2 }}

===Manifestos===
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110927045458/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/lab97.htm Labour (New Labour, New Life For Britain)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110920112230/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/con97.htm Conservative (You can only be sure with the Conservatives)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110527145426/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/e97/man/ld97man.htm Liberal Democrats (Make the Difference)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20111008115443/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/natdem97.htm National Democrats (A Manifesto for Britain)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20000618072231/http://www.bnp.net/policy.html British National Party (British Nationalism- An Idea whose time has come)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120314155214/http://www.libparty.demon.co.uk/ge97/manifest.htm Liberal Party (Radical ideas – not the dead centre)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120425084821/http://politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/ukip97.htm UK Independence Party]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110915011413/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/3way97.htm Third Way]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120425084836/http://politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/prolif97.htm The ProLife Alliance]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110926100427/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/sinnf97.htm Sinn Féin (A New Opportunity for Peace)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110916150021/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/dup97.htm Democratic Unionist Party]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120425084952/http://politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/niall97.htm Alliance of Liberty (Agenda for Change)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110916204739/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/pup97.htm Progressive Unionist Party]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120425085022/http://politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/uu97.htm Ulster Unionist Party]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120425085032/http://politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/pcymru97.htm Plaid Cymru (The Best for Wales)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110913024908/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/ge97/man/snp97.pdf Scottish National Party (Yes We Can Win the Best for Scotland)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120425085153/http://politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/scgrn97.htm Scottish Green Party]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120425085201/http://politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/seq97.htm Socialist Equality Party (A strategy for a workers' government!)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110602193652/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/comm97.htm Communist Party of Great Britain]

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/politics97/background/pastelec/ge97.shtml BBC Election Website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20130527133030/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/man/man97.htm 1997 election manifestos] – Link to 1997 election manifestos of various parties.
* [https://archives.lse.ac.uk/TreeBrowse.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog&field=RefNo&key=GENERAL%20ELECTION%201997 Catalogue of 1997 general election ephemera] at the [https://archives.lse.ac.uk/ Archives Division] of the [[London School of Economics]].

{{1997 United Kingdom general election|state=collapsed}}
{{British elections}}
{{John Major}}
{{Tony Blair}}
{{New Labour}}

[[Category:1997 United Kingdom general election| ]]
[[Category:1997 elections in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:General elections to the Parliament of the United Kingdom|1997]]
[[Category:May 1997 in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Premiership of John Major]]
[[Category:Tony Blair]]
[[Category:New Labour]]
[[Category:History of the Labour Party (UK)]]
{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} 
{{notelist}}