On Wednesday 14 December 1918, the 1918 United Kingdom general election was held in Scotland, to elect all 707 members of the House of Commons, with 74 seats being in Scotland. 71 territorial seats (an increase of 1 over the previous election), comprising 32 burgh constituencies and 38 county constituencies. The territorial seats used the first past the post voting method. There was one university constituency, which elected an additional 3 members using the Single Transferable Vote (STV) method.
The election was called immediately after the Armistice with Germany which ended the First World War, and was held on Saturday, 14 December 1918. The governing coalition, under Prime Minister David Lloyd George, sent letters of endorsement to candidates who supported the coalition government, these being primarily Conservatives and Unionists and Coalition Liberals. These were nicknamed "Coalition Coupons", and led to the election being known as the "coupon election".
Electoral system
It was the first general election to be held after enactment of the Representation of the People Act 1918. It was the first election and all men over the age of 21 could vote. By extension, it was the first election in which women over the age of 30 could vote in elections, though with some qualifications of property ownership. Under the same Act, the number of territorial seats was increased from 70 to 71, although this was within 70 constituencies as Dundee was represented by two seats. This arrangement of seats would be used under 1950.
The university constituency replaced the two single-member constituencies of Glasgow and Aberdeen Universities and Edinburgh and St Andrews Universities. This constituency would be used until it was abolished for the 1950.
Candidates
Below is a table summarising the candidates of the 1918 general election in Scotland, excluding those in the Combined Scottish Universities constituency.
Affiliation CandidatesLabour Party 39Unionist Party 37Scottish Liberal Party 33Coalition Liberal 28Independent 4Highland Land League 4Co-operative Party 3Independent Labour 3Independent Liberal 2Coalition National Democratic 2Independent Unionist 2Coalition Labour 1Scottish Prohibition Party 1Miners' Reform Union 1National Democratic and Labour Party 1British Socialist Party 1Greenock and District Dockers 1Independent Progressive 1 Independent Democrat 1Total 165
Analysis
Coalition Liberals and Liberal party
The Coalition Liberals (led by Prime Minister David Lloyd George) took seats from the Liberal Party (led by H. H. Asquith), winning a greater number of votes and seats than the Liberal Party from which it emerged.
When combined with results from across the United Kingdom, the result was a massive landslide in favour of the coalition, with massive losses for Liberals who were not endorsed. Nearly all the Liberal MPs without coupons were defeated, including party leader H. H. Asquith, who lost his seat in East Fife. Asquith continued as Liberal leader, and subsequently returned to the parliament as member for Paisley in the 1920 Paisley by-election.
The Liberal Party lost a total of 50 seats in Scotland, with 51 losses but one gain from the Conservative Party. Conversely, the newly formed Coalition Liberals took a total of 26 seats (including one in the Combined Scottish Universities constituency). 24 of the gains amongst the Coalition Liberals came from the Liberal Party, with two coming from its partners in Scotland, the Unionist Party (in national affiliation with the Conservative Party).
Unionist Party
The Unionists, which had formed in 1912 from the unification of the Scottish branches of the Conservative and Liberal Unionists were the main beneficiaries of the election, gaining 21 seats compared to the pre-war total of the two parties. However, the candidates were split such that, under the Coalition Coupons, 34 candidates of the 37 received coupons sponsored by the Coalition Government.
The Unionists with coalition coupons won 30 seats, with a gain of 21 seats solely from the Liberal Party. However, Unionists lost Kinross and Western Perthshire (which replaced the prior West Perthshire), Galloway (a new constituency that included the prior Unionist seat of Wigtownshire) and East Renfrewshire. The losses in Galloway and East Renfrewshire to their Coalition partner, the Coalition Liberals, and the loss in Kinross and Western Perthshire to the Liberal Party. The Coalitions liberal Party took two of the three seats in the Combined Scottish Universities constituency.
Three candidates, however, did not receive Coalition Coupons. These were Alexander Sprot in East Fife, William T. Shaw in Forfarshire, and Samuel Chapman. Against the trend of the majority of coalition candidates winning seats, with candidates with them being largesly unsuccessful, Alexander Sprot and William Shaw won their seats from the Liberal Party. Importantly, Sprot won East Fife from H. H. Asquith. Chapman was unsuccessful, however, would eventually be elected the MP for Edinburgh South at the next election. These were two further gains for the Unionist Party overall.
Although such non-Coalition Unionist candidates (and indeed Conservative Party candidates) did not receive Coalition Coupons, they did not form part of a bloc or opposition to the Coalition Government. Overall, the Unionist Party (in a national affiliation with the also newly formed Conservative Party), gained 24 seats but lost three, overall winning 21 more seats compared to the last election to a total of 32 in Scotland.
Labour and other parties
The Labor Party came second in terms of votes at 23.6% (behind the Unionist Party) won, but secured only 6 seats. As such, it was the third largest party in terms of seats in Scotland. Candidate James Brown won South Ayrshire from the Liberal Party, with Neil Maclean in Glasgow Govan from the Liberal Party. Duncan Graham won Hamilton from the Liberal Party, which had held the prior seat of Mid Lanarkshire. The party also retained the seats of West Fife and Glasgow Central (which replaced Glasgow Blackfriars and Hutchesontown), along with one of the two seats in Dundee.
Amongst the 10 Co-operative candidates across the United Kingdom at this election (the party's first general election, and only wherein the party was not yet under the Whips of the Labour Party), three candidates stood in Scotland. However, the group did not gain any seats. Similarly, neither the National Democratic and Labour Party nor the Coalition National Democratic and Labour won seats at this election for the coalition.
Within the Coalition, George Barnes (although not a recipient of a Coalition Coupon) won Glasgow Gorbals for the Coalition Labour group. He was one of five such candidates, and one of four of such winning candidates across the United Kingdom. Finally, Frank Rose won Aberdeen North as an Independent Labour candidate. Frank Rose is considered both a candidate for the Labour Party and as part of Independent Labour due to his defiance of the Labour Whip, but not considered an official Labour candidate in Parliamentary electoral records for the purposes of this election.
Seat summary
Below is a table summarising the total number of seats, gains and losses for each party in both the territorial county and burgh constituencies and the Combined Scottish Universities constituency.
+PartySeats Total Gains Losses Net Of total (%) Coalition Government (Total) 59 colspan="2" 48 79.7 Unionist 32 24 3 21 43.2 Coalition Liberal 26 colspan="2" 26 35.1 Coalition Labour 1 colspan="2" 1 1.4 Coalition NDP 0 colspan="3" — Liberal 8 1 51 50 10.8 Labour 6 3 0 3 8.1 Independent Labour 1 colspan=2 1 1.4 Total 74 2
County and burgh constituency results
Below is a table summarising the constituency results of the 1918 general election in Wales, excluding the result in the Combined Scottish Universities constituency.
+PartySeatsAggregate votes Total Gains Losses Net Of total (%) Total Of total (%) Change (%) Coalition Government (Total) 56 colspan="2" 47 78.9 606,198 54.3 Unionist 30 24 3 21 42.3 358,469 32.8 9.8 Coalition Liberal 25 colspan="2" 25 35.2 221,145 19.1 Coalition Labour 1 colspan="2" 1 1.4 14,247 1.3 Coalition NDP 0 colspan="3" — 12,337 1.1 Labour 6 3 0 3 8.5 265,744 22.9 19.3 Liberal 8 1 51 50 11.3 163,960 15.0 38.6 Co-operative Party 0 colspan=3 — 19,841 1.8 Independent Labour 1 colspan=2 1 1.4 15,876 1.4 Scottish Prohibition 0 0 0 — 10,423 0.5 0.2 Independent 0 colspan=3 — 9,306 0.8 Highland Land League 0 colspan=3 — 8,710 0.8 Independent Liberal 0 colspan=3 — 4,847 0.4 Miners' Reform Union 0 colspan=3 — 5,076 0.5 National Democratic and Labour 0 colspan=3 — 4,297 0.4 Independent Democrat 0 colspan=3 — 3,491 0.3 British Socialist 0 colspan=3 — 3,751 0.3 Independent Unionist 0 colspan=3 — 2,550 0.2 Greenock and District Dockers 0 colspan=3 — 2,050 0.2 Independent Progressive 0 colspan=3 — 591 0.1 Total 71 1 100.0 1,126,711 100.0 0.0 Registered voters, and turnout 2,205,383 55.1 26.7
Popular vote
Parliament seats
Combined Scottish Universities result
The Combined Scottish Universities elected an additional 3 members to the house using the STV voting method.
Liberal Party candidate Dugald Cowan held the "Coupon" as a candidate at this election, and so his election represented a gain for the Coalition Liberals, who therefore won 26 seats in total. Both Scottish Unionist candidates were also Coalition coupon recipients.
See also 1918 United Kingdom general election in England 1918 United Kingdom general election in Ireland 1918 United Kingdom general election in Wales
Notes
References