General elections

When Parliament is dissolved every seat in the House of Commons becomes vacant
and a general election is held. Each constituency in the UK elects one Member of
Parliament (MP) to a seat in the House of Commons. Usually the political party that
wins the most seats in the House of Commons forms the Government.

What is a general election?

When was the last general election?

Where can I find the results of the general election?

Who becomes Prime Minister?

Formation of a government following a general election

Commons Library briefings

What is a general election?

A general election is an opportunity for people in every part of the UK to choose their MP - the
person who will represent their local area (constituency) in the House of Commons for up to five
years.
There is normally a choice of several candidates in each constituency, some of which are the
local candidates for national political parties. People can only vote for one of the candidates and
the candidate that receives most votes becomes their MP.

When was the last general election?

The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 sets the interval between general elections at five years. At
the end of this time a new House of Commons must be elected.
The date of the general election was 7 May 2015.
The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 provides for general elections to be held on the first
Thursday in May every five years.
However, there are two provisions that trigger an election other than at five year intervals:

a motion of no confidence is passed in Her Majesty's Government by a simple majority

and 14 days elapses without the House passing a confidence motion in any new Government
formed

a motion for a general election is agreed by two thirds of the total number of seats in the
Commons including vacant seats (currently 434 out of 650)
Previous to this Act, the Prime Minister could call a general election at any time within the five
year period and not all Parliaments lasted the full five years.
Before 2011 a general election could be called earlier for a number of reasons. For example, the
Prime Minister could decide to call an election at a time when he or she was most confident of
winning the election (getting more MPs than any other party) or if a government was defeated on
a confidence motion, a general election could follow.

Do general elections have to be held on Thursdays?

Not necessarily. The Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 set the date of the last general election at
Thursday 7 May 2015 and subsequent elections to be held on the first Thursday of May at five
year intervals. However, if an earlier general election is triggered the Act does not state that the
election has to be held on a Thursday.
Before the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 the Prime Minister could choose any weekday for a
general election, according to a fixed electoral timetable. However, Thursday has become the
traditional day for general elections.
The last general election not to be held on a Thursday was on Tuesday 27 October 1931.

Where can I find the results of the general election?

Election results are widely reported in the local and national media, with many providing rolling
coverage of the results as they are announced.
Each local authority with responsibility for running elections publishes the results for
parliamentary constituencies in their area.
The Electoral Commission publishes the overall election results as well as those for individual
constituencies.

GOV.UK: Find your local council (external site)

General Election 2015: House of Commons Library briefing paper

Who becomes Prime Minister?

Can I vote for a new Prime Minister?
No. You can only vote to elect your local MP in a general election. Even if you live in the
constituency represented by the current Prime Minister or the leader of another political party,
you are still only voting on whether he or she will be your local MP in the next Parliament.

Who chooses the Prime Minister?

The Prime Minister is appointed by the Queen, who is guided by constitutional conventions.

The British Monarchy: The Queen and Government (external site)

The Cabinet Manual sets out the main laws, rules and conventions affecting the conduct and
operation of government, including the role of the Sovereign.
GOV.UK: The Cabinet Manual (external site)

Formation of a government following a general election

Usually the political party that wins the most seats in the House of Commons at a general
election forms the new government and its leader becomes Prime Minister.
If no party wins a majority of the seats, a situation which is known as a 'hung Parliament', then
the largest party may form a minority government or there may be a coalition government of two
or more parties. The Prime Minister appoints ministers who work in the government departments,
the most senior of these sit in Cabinet.

Read more about Parliament: Hung Parliament

Read more about Parliament: Parliament and Government

Commons Library briefings

The House of Commons Library produces briefing papers to inform MPs and their staff of key
issues. The papers contain factual information and a range of opinions on each subject, and aim
to be politically impartial. The Library has published the following briefing papers on general
elections and the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011:

UK election statistics 1918-2012: House of Commons Library briefing paper

Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011: House of Commons Library briefing paper

The History of the Parliamentary Franchise: House of Commons Library briefing paper

Party Political Broadcasts: House of Commons Library briefing paper

Pre-election contacts between civil servants and opposition parties: House of Commons
Library briefing paper

Responsibilities of Returning Officers: House of Commons Library briefing paper

Related information
Read current parliamentary material available on general elections, including select committee
reports, briefing papers on current legislation and other subjects produced by the parliamentary
research services.

Topics: General elections