From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base
1983 United Kingdom general election in Scotland
A general election was held in the United Kingdom on Thursday 9 June 1983 and all 72 seats in Scotland were contested. As a result of the Third Periodical Review undertaken by the Boundary Commission for Scotland the number of seats representing Scotland had increased by one from the 71 contested at the 1979 election.
The Labour, Conservative and Scottish National parties all sustained modest losses in vote share to the SDP–Liberal Alliance. The Labour Party won 41 seats, with the Conservative Party winning 21, the Alliance winning eight and the Scottish National Party winning two. The Scottish Conservatives have been unable to match their 1983 Westminster seat total since, although they did record a slightly larger share of the Scottish vote in 2017.
When combined with results from across the United Kingdom, the election saw the Conservatives winning a landslide victory, improving on their 1979 result and achieving their best results since 1935. Although there was a slight drop in their share of the vote, they made significant gains at the expense of Labour. This was at odds with the Scottish result, as Labour remained by far the largest party in Scotland.
| Party | Seats | Seatschange | Votes | % | %change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Party | 41 | 3 | 990,654 | 35.1 | 6.5 | |
| Conservative Party | 21 | 1 | 801,487 | 28.4 | 3.0 | |
| SDP–Liberal Alliance | 8 | 5 | 692,634 | 24.5 | 15.5 | |
| Liberal | 5 | 2 | 356,224 | 12.6 | 3.6 | |
| Social Democratic Party | 3 | 3 | 336,410 | 11.9 | 11.9 | |
| Scottish National Party | 2 | 331,975 | 11.8 | 5.5 | ||
| Ecology Party | 0 | 3,854 | 0.1 | 0.1 | ||
| Communist | 0 | 3,223 | 0.1 | 0.1 | ||
| Workers Revolutionary | 0 | 262 | 0.0 | |||
| British National Party | 0 | 103 | 0.0 | New | ||
| Other | 0 | 388 | 0.0 | |||
| Total | 72 | 1 | 2,824,580 | 100.0 | ||
| Turnout: | 72.7 | 4.1 |
- List of MPs for constituencies in Scotland (1983–1987)
- 1983 United Kingdom general election in England
- 1983 United Kingdom general election in Northern Ireland
- 1983 United Kingdom general election in Wales
Ask Mako anything about 1983 United Kingdom general election in Scotland — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.
Research with MakoFree with your Surf account
Create a free account to save articles, ask Mako questions, and organize your research.
Sign up freeThis content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.
Report