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United Kingdom general election, 1997 facts for kids

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TonyBlairBasra.JPG John Major 1996.jpg Paddy Ashdown 1.jpg
Tony Blair
Labour Party Leader		 John Major
Conservative Party Leader		 Paddy Ashdown
Liberal Democrat Leader

The UK general election in 1997 was a big event in British politics. It happened on 1 May 1997. People voted to choose 659 members for the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. These members are called Members of Parliament (MPs). The three main people hoping to become Prime Minister are shown on the right.

The Labour Party, led by Tony Blair, won a huge number of seats. They formed the first Labour government since 1979. Labour won 418 seats. This was the biggest win for any party since 1931. The Conservative Party had their worst result since 1906. They lost all their seats in Scotland and Wales. Many well-known Conservative politicians also lost their seats. These included Michael Portillo and Malcolm Rifkind.

The Liberal Democrats won 46 seats. This was the most seats a third party had won since 1929. The Referendum Party wanted Britain to leave the European Union. They got 2.6% of the votes but no seats.

What is a General Election?

A general election is when people in a country vote for their representatives. These representatives then sit in the parliament. In the UK, they sit in the House of Commons. The party that wins the most seats usually forms the government. Their leader becomes the Prime Minister.

The Main Parties and Leaders

In the 1997 election, three main political parties were competing. Each had a leader hoping to become Prime Minister.

  • The Labour Party was led by Tony Blair. They wanted to bring new ideas to the country.
  • The Conservative Party was led by John Major. They had been in power for many years.
  • The Liberal Democrats were led by Paddy Ashdown. They aimed to offer a different choice.

The Big Win for Labour

The Labour Party had a huge victory in 1997. They won 418 out of 659 seats. This meant they had a very large "majority." A majority means they had many more seats than all other parties combined. This made it easy for them to pass new laws. Tony Blair became the new Prime Minister. This was a big change for the UK.

What Happened to the Conservatives?

The Conservative Party faced a very tough election. They won only 165 seats. This was a big drop from their previous results. They lost many seats they had held for a long time. They even lost all their seats in Scotland and Wales. This was a surprising outcome for the party.

Election Results at a Glance

Here are the final results for the main parties and those that won seats:

Images for kids

  • TonyBlairofficial (cropped)
  • ASHDOWN Paddy
  • 1997 UK General Election Gallagher Index

    The disproportionality of the house of parliament in the 1997 election was 16.71 according to the Gallagher Index. This mainly shows the difference between Labour and the Liberal Democrats.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Elecciones generales del Reino Unido de 1997 para niños

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