The centenary of the 1918 general election in December 2018 was marked by some new research into the seventeen women candidates. Our very own Vote 100 volunteer Robin Fell looked into some of the contemporary press coverage for this guest … Continue reading Making a stand: Women candidates at the 1918 General Election
Today is the birthday of Norah Runge (27 September 1884 – 6 June 1978), an unsung interwar woman MP. To mark the occasion we are delighted to publish this guest post by Vote 100 volunteers Oonagh Gay and Isobel White. Who … Continue reading Norah Runge MP: An exceptional woman
We are very pleased to be able to publish this piece of ‘lost’ history which brings to light the Wigan man, Thorley Smith (1873-1940), who was the first Parliamentary candidate to stand on a women’s suffrage ticket. Supported by the … Continue reading Wigan man stands for women!
Guest post by Oonagh Gay The general election of July 1945 was the first held for a decade. The Second World War had led to the suspension of elections. So the results were awaited with more than common interest. The contest was held on 5 July, (with some constituencies delaying until 12 and 19 July) but the polls were not counted and declared until 3 weeks later on 26 July. This was to allow those serving abroad in the armed forces to have their votes included. The landslide victory of the Labour Party was unexpected, and had a profound impact … Continue reading ALL CHANGE! Women and the 1945 General Election
Guest post by Oonagh Gay On 1 May 1997 120 women MPs were elected; exactly double the number elected in 1992 and representing 18.2 per cent of all MPs, 71 of these MPs were new. For House of Commons Library staff, suddenly, it was no longer a rarity to meet a woman MP. Previously, it was possible to recognise each woman MP and name their constituency without much difficulty. Suddenly there was a host of younger, unfamiliar, female faces to process. 101 of those 120 women elected were Labour, reflecting the landslide majority achieved by their Party, and the positive … Continue reading When meeting a new woman MP was no longer a rarity for us staff! Recollections of the impact of the May 1997 election
UK Vote 100: Looking forward to the centenary of Equal Franchise in 2028 in the UK Parliament 