1906 General Election
The Liberal landslide12 January – 8 February 1906 · The Mass Franchise · 670 seats, 336 for a majority
A Liberal landslide fuelled by tariff reform splits, 'Chinese slavery' and nonconformist anger over education. The Conservatives fell to 156 seats, and 29 Labour members arrived as a parliamentary force.
Prime Minister before
Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman
Liberal
Prime Minister (continued)
Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman
Liberal
Government formed
Liberal
Turnout
83.2%
electorate 7,264,608
The result
| Share of Commons | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Henry Campbell-Bannerman | 397 | 2,565,644 | 48.9% | +3.8 | |
| Conservative and Liberal Unionist | Arthur Balfour | 156 | 2,278,076 | 43.4% | -6.8 | |
| Irish Parliamentary | John Redmond | 82 | 33,231 | 0.6% | -1.2 | |
| Labour Repr. Cmte. | Keir Hardie | 29 | 254,202 | 4.8% | +3.5 |
Before 1918, party labels were looser and many seats went uncontested, so vote totals and shares understate real support. Seat counts are the reliable measure.