A small county slightly to the south and east of the centre of the country, and completely bounded by other counties.
The county of Hertfordshire in relation to England

The county of Hertfordshire in England is divided into eleven parliamentary constituencies. Each of the eleven elects a Member of Parliament (MP) to represent it at the United Kingdom (UK) Parliament in Westminster. As of the 2019 general election, ten of Hertfordshire's eleven MPs are Conservatives. The county currently has two urban borough constituencies (BC) – Broxbourne and Watford – while the other nine are classed as more rural county constituencies (CC).

Constituencies

Context of the 2019 result. The county elected 10 Tory MPs and 1 Lib. Dem. MP. Luton, Bedfordshire returned two Labour candidates, it forms a small projection into the county's shape.

Limits of the seats were amended by the Fifth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies carried out by the Boundary Commission for England for future elections which have included 2010, 2015, 2017 and 2019. Each constituency is made up of whole or partial local government wards, which elect councillors at English local elections. Nine are designated as county constituencies (in which candidates can spend more per head than their borough counterparts). Two are borough constituencies.

[1]   Conservative †   Labour ‡   Liberal Democrat ¤

Name[nb 1] Electorate[2] Majority[3][nb 2] Member of Parliament[3] Nearest opposition[3] Map
Broxbourne BC 73,182 19,807   Charles Walker †[4]   Sean Waters ‡
A fairly small constituency in the southeast part of the county.
Hemel Hempstead CC 74,035 14,563 Michael Penning † Nabila Ahmed ‡
A medium-sized constituency. It is slightly to the northwest of the centre of the county.
Hertford and Stortford CC 81,765 19,620 Julie Marson † Chris Vince ‡
A medium-sized constituency located in the east of the county.
Hertsmere CC 73,971 21,313 Oliver Dowden † Holly Kal-Weiss ‡
A small-to-medium-sized constituency, located in the south of the county.
Hitchin and Harpenden CC 76,323 6,895 Bim Afolami † Sam Collins ¤
A fairly large constituency, stretching from the centre of the county northwards.
North East Hertfordshire CC 76,123 18,189 Oliver Heald † Kelley Green ‡
The largest constituency in the county, primarily located in the northeast of the county. Its northernmost parts are considerably further north than constituencies in the west.
South West Hertfordshire CC 80,499 14,408 Gagan Mohindra † David Gauke
A medium-sized constituency. It is long and thin in shape, stretching from the northwest to the southwest of the county.
St Albans CC 73,727 6,293 Daisy Cooper ¤ Anne Main †
A small-to-medium-sized constituency, slightly west of the centre of the county. It is bordered entirely by other constituencies in the county.
Stevenage CC 71,562 8,562 Stephen McPartland † Jill Borcherds ‡
A small constituency located slightly north of the centre of the county. It is bordered exclusively by other constituencies in the county.
Watford BC 83,359 4,433 Dean Russell † Chris Ostrowski ‡
A small constituency, southwest of the centre of the county.
Welwyn Hatfield CC 74,892 10,955 Grant Shapps † Rosie Newbigging ‡
A medium-sized constituency at the centre of the county. It is entirely bounded by other constituencies in the county.

2010 boundary changes

The Boundary Commission for England decided not to change Hertfordshire's representation in Parliament for the 2010 election. It did however suggest slight boundary changes to reduce electoral disparity. The recommendations, which became law with the Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 2007, also ensured that local government wards in Hertfordshire would no longer be split between two Parliamentary constituencies.[5][6]

NameBoundaries 1997-2010Boundaries 2010–present
1 Broxbourne BC
A map of a county, divided into eleven constituencies
The same map of a county. It is divided into eleven constituencies, some of which have slightly different boundaries.
2 Hemel Hempstead CC
3 Hertford and Stortford CC
4 Hertsmere CC
5 Hitchin and Harpenden CC
6 North East Hertfordshire CC
7 South West Hertfordshire CC
8 St Albans CC
9 Stevenage CC
10 Watford BC
11 Welwyn Hatfield CC

Proposed boundary changes

See 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies for further details.

Following the abandonment of the Sixth Periodic Review (the 2018 review), the Boundary Commission for England formally launched the 2023 Review on 5 January 2021.[7] Initial proposals were published on 8 June 2021 and, following two periods of public consultation, revised proposals were published on 8 November 2022. The final proposals were published on 28 June 2023.

The commission has proposed that Hertfordshire be combined with Bedfordshire as a sub-region of the Eastern Region, with the creation of the cross-county boundary constituency of Hitchin. As a result of the changes, Hitchin and Harpenden would be abolished and replaced by a new constituency named Harpenden and Berkhamsted.[8][9][10]

The following seats are proposed:

Containing electoral wards in Broxbourne

Containing electoral wards in Dacorum

Containing electoral wards in East Hertfordshire

Containing electoral wards in Hertsmere

Containing electoral wards in North Hertfordshire

Containing electoral wards in St Albans

Containing electoral wards in Stevenage

  • Stevenage (part)

Containing electoral wards in Three Rivers

  • South West Hertfordshire (part)

Containing electoral wards in Watford

  • Watford (part)

Containing electoral wards in Welwyn Hatfield

Results history

Primary data source: House of Commons research briefing - General election results from 1918 to 2019[11]

2019

The number of votes cast for each political party who fielded candidates in constituencies comprising Hertfordshire in the 2019 general election were as follows:

Party Votes % Change from 2017 Seats Change from 2017
Conservative 317,018 52.7% Decrease1.6% 10 Decrease1
Labour 141,143 23.5% Decrease8.6% 0 0
Liberal Democrats 110,006 18.3% Increase8.4% 1 Increase1
Greens 15,132 2.5% Increase0.2% 0 0
Others 17,764 3.0% Increase1.6% 0 0
Total 601,063 100.0 11

Percentage votes

Election year 1974

(Feb)

 1974

(Oct)

 1979 1983 1987 1992 1997 2001 2005 2010 2015 2017 2019
Conservative 40.4 41.3 51.1 50.3 52.0 53.3 40.6 41.8 44.8 50.4 52.6 54.3 52.7
Labour 35.0 38.5 34.4 19.0 19.8 25.5 39.7 38.9 30.2 19.0 22.4 32.1 23.5
Liberal Democrat1 24.4 19.8 13.2 30.2 27.8 20.3 16.0 16.9 21.4 24.0 8.7 9.9 18.3
Green Party - - - - * * * * * 0.8 3.6 2.3 2.5
UKIP - - - - - - * * * 3.3 12.5 1.2 *
Other 0.2 0.4 1.3 0.5 0.4 0.9 3.7 2.4 3.6 2.5 0.2 0.2 3.0

11974 & 1979 - Liberal Party; 1983 & 1987 - SDP-Liberal Alliance

* Included in Other

Seats

Election year 1974

(Feb)

 1974

(Oct)

 1979 1983 1987 1992 1997 2001 2005 2010 2015 2017 2019
Conservative 7 5 9 10 10 10 6 6 9 11 11 11 10
Labour 2 4 0 0 0 0 5 5 2 0 0 0 0
Liberal Democrat1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Total 9 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 11 11 11 11 11

11974 & 1979 - Liberal Party; 1983 & 1987 - SDP-Liberal Alliance

Maps

1885-1910

1918-1945

1950-1970

1974-present

Timeline

  Former constituency
  * Constituency for the 2017 United Kingdom general election
Constituency Years
1290–12981298–13071307–18521852–18851885–19181918–19451945–19501950–19551955–19741974–19831983–19971997–*
Hertfordshire[12] 1290–1885  
Hertford[12][13]   1298–1974
St Albans[nb 3][12][13]   1307–1852   1885–*
Watford[13]   1885–*
Hitchin[13]   1885–1983
Hemel Hempstead[14]   1918–1983 1997–*
Barnet   1945–1974 Part of Greater London from 1965
South West Hertfordshire[15][16]   1950–*
East Hertfordshire[17]   1955–1983
Hertford and Stevenage   1974–1983
South Hertfordshire   1974–1983
Welwyn Hatfield   1974–*
North Hertfordshire   1983–1997
West Hertfordshire   1983–1997
Broxbourne   1983–*
Hertford and Stortford   1983–*
Hertsmere   1983–*
Stevenage 1983–*
Hitchin and Harpenden   1997–*
North East Hertfordshire   1997–*

Historical representation by party

A cell marked → (with a different colour background to the preceding cell) indicates that the previous MP continued to sit under a new party name.

1885 to 1918

  Conservative   Independent   Liberal

Constituency 1885 1886 1892 1895 98 1900 04 1906 Jan 10 Dec 10 11 16
Hertford A. Smith E. Cecil A. H. Smith Rolleston Billing
Hitchin Dimsdale Hudson Bertram Hillier R. Cecil
St Albans J. W. Grimston Gibbs Slack Carlile
Watford Halsey Micklem Ward

1918 to 1955

  Anti-Waste League   Conservative   Independent   Labour   Liberal   Silver Badge

Constituency 1918 19 20 21 1922 1923 1924 1929 1931 33 1935 37 41 43 1945 1950 1951
Hertford Billing Sueter → Walker-Smith
Hitchin R. Cecil Kindersley Knebworth Wilson Berry Jones Fisher
St Albans Carlile Fremantle J. Grimston Dumpleton J. Grimston
Watford Herbert Freeman
Hemel Hempstead Talbot J. Davidson Dunn J. Davidson F. Davidson
Barnet Taylor Maudling
Hertfordshire SW Longden

1955 to present

  Conservative   Independent   Labour   Liberal Democrats

Constituency 1955 1959 1964 1966 1970 Feb 1974 Oct 1974 1979 79 1983 1987 1992 1997 2001 2005 2010 2015 2017 19 2019
Barnet Maudling Transferred to Greater London
Hemel Hempstead (1945–83, 97-) / W Herts (1983) Davidson Allason Corbett Lyell Jones McWalter Penning
Hertford / & Stevenage (1974) / H & Stortford (1983) Lindsay Williams Wells Prisk Marson
Hitchin / North Herts (1983) / NE Herts (1997) Maddan Williams Stewart Heald
St Albans Grimston Goodhew Lilley Pollard Main Cooper
Watford Farey-Jones Tuck Garel-Jones Ward Harrington Russell
Hertfordshire SW Longden Dodsworth Page Gauke → Mohindra
Hertfordshire E / Broxbourne (1983) Walker-Smith Roe Walker
Hertfordshire South / Hertsmere (1983) Parkinson Clappison Dowden
Welwyn and Hatfield Lindsay Hayman Murphy Evans Johnson Shapps
Stevenage Wood Follett McPartland
Hitchin and Harpenden Lilley Afolami

See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ BC denotes borough constituency, CC denotes county constituency.
  2. ↑ The majority is the number of votes the winning candidate receives more than their nearest rival.
  3. ↑ St Albans was abolished in 1852, but re-established in 1885.

References

General
  • "Boundary Commission for England: Fifth Periodical Report" (PDF). Boundary Commission for England. Crown Copyright. 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 6 November 2009.
  • Craig, Frederick Walter Scott (1972). Boundaries of Parliamentary Constituencies 1885–1972. Chichester, Sussex: Political Reference Publications. ISBN 0-900178-13-2.
  • Robinson, Gwennah (1978). Barracuda Guide to County History, Vol III: Hertfordshire. Barracuda Books. ISBN 0-86023-030-9.
  • Richard Hacker (13 February 2001). "Report on a local inquiry into the Parliamentary constituency boundaries for the county of Hertfordshire" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 January 2007. Retrieved 28 November 2009.
Specific
  1. ↑ "Variation of election expenses limits for candidates at UK Parliamentary and local government elections" (PDF). The Electoral Commission. Retrieved 26 November 2009.
  2. ↑ Baker, Carl; Uberoi, Elise; Cracknell, Richard (28 January 2020). "General Election 2019: full results and analysis". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. 1 2 3 "Constituencies A-Z - Election 2019". BBC News. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  4. ↑ "Constituency:Broxbourne". BBC News. Retrieved 2 August 2010.
  5. ↑ Boundary Commission for England pp. 346–350.
  6. ↑ "The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 2007". Office of Public Sector Information. Crown copyright. 13 June 2007. Archived from the original on 11 February 2010. Retrieved 7 November 2009.
  7. ↑ "2023 Review | Boundary Commission for England". boundarycommissionforengland.independent.gov.uk. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  8. ↑ "Boundary proposals reveal brand new constituency - so is your MP changing?". Watford Observer. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  9. ↑ Adams, Matt (8 June 2021). "Harpenden constituency to go under proposed boundary changes". Herts Advertiser. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  10. ↑ "The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in England – Volume one: Report | Boundary Commission for England". paras 207-234. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  11. ↑ Watson, Christopher; Uberoi, Elise; Loft, Philip (17 April 2020). "General election results from 1918 to 2019". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  12. 1 2 3 David Boothroyd. "Parliamentary Constituencies in the unreformed House". David Boothroyd. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
  13. 1 2 3 4 "Historic maps". David Rumsey Historical Map Collection. Retrieved 28 November 2009.
  14. ↑ "Full text of "The Representation of the people act, 1918 : with explanatory notes"". Internet Archive. Retrieved 28 November 2009.
  15. ↑ "UK General Election results July 1945". politicsresources.net. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 29 November 2009.
  16. ↑ "UK General Election results February 1950". politicsresources.net. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 29 November 2009.
  17. ↑ "UK General Election results May 1955". politicsresources.net. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 29 November 2009.
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