Devon and East Plymouth (European Parliament constituency) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Devon and East Plymouth
European Parliament constituency
European Parliament logo
Member state	United Kingdom
Created	1994
Dissolved	1999
MEPs	1
Sources
[1]

Devon and East Plymouth was a special area in England. It was used for voting in elections for the European Parliament. This area covered most of Devon, but not the city of Plymouth. It was created in 1994. Before that, parts of it were in other voting areas like Devon and Cornwall and Plymouth.

In the past, the United Kingdom used a voting system called "first-past-the-post" for European elections. This meant that the candidate with the most votes won, even if they didn't get more than half of all votes. Each voting area, like Devon and East Plymouth, elected only one person to the European Parliament.

This area included several smaller voting districts. These were Exeter, Plymouth Sutton, South Hams, Teignbridge, Tiverton, Torbay, and Torridge and West Devon. In 1999, Devon and East Plymouth became part of a much larger voting area called South West England.

Who Represented Devon and East Plymouth?

This section shows the person elected to represent Devon and East Plymouth in the European Parliament.

The 1994 Election Results

Only one election was held for the Devon and East Plymouth seat, in 1994. This election had an interesting situation. A candidate named Richard Huggett used the description "Literal Democrat". This name sounded very similar to the Liberal Democrats party.

A Close Election and a Name Mix-Up

The Liberal Democrats felt this name might confuse voters. They tried to stop the nomination in court. However, the judge decided that the nomination had to be allowed. Richard Huggett received over 10,000 votes. The Liberal Democrat candidate, Adrian Sanders, finished very close behind the winner, only 700 votes away. This close result led to a change in the law. New rules were made to prevent party names from being too similar and confusing voters.