title: Kennington (UK Parliament constituency)
text: # Kennington (UK Parliament constituency)
  
  Kennington was a borough constituency centred on the Kennington district of South London. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
  
  The constituency was created for the 1885 general election, and abolished for the 1950 general election.
  
  In 1918 Alice Theresa Lucas became the first woman to stand as a Conservative party candidate. She took 32.2% of the vote and came second to the Liberal candidate Henry Purchase. She would have been the first woman MP if she had been elected.
  
  ## Members of Parliament
  
  | Election | Member | Party |
  | - | - | - |
  | 1885 | Robert Gent-Davis | Conservative |
  | 1889 | Mark Hanbury Beaufoy | Liberal |
  | 1895 | Sir Frederick Cook | Conservative |
  | 1906 | Sir Stephen Collins | Liberal |
  | 1918 | Henry Purchase | Coalition Liberal |
  | 1922 | Francis Capel Harrison | Conservative |
  | 1923 | Thomas Williams | Labour |
  | 1924 | George Harvey | Unionist |
  | 1929 | Leonard Matters | Labour |
  | 1931 | Sir George Harvey | Conservative |
  | 1939 | John Wilmot | Labour |
  | 1945 | Charles Gibson | Labour |
  | 1950 | constituency abolished | constituency abolished |
  
  ## Election results
  
  ### Elections in the 1940s
  
  General election 1945: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Labour | Charles Gibson | 12,910 | 70.2 | +10.1 |
  | | Conservative | S.H. Stanley | 5,471 | 29.8 | -10.1 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,439 | 40.4 | +20.2 |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 29,529 | 62.2 | +11.6 |
  | | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |
  
  ### Elections in the 1930s
  
  1939 Kennington by-election: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Labour | John Wilmot | 10,715 | 60.1 | +11.2 |
  | | Conservative | A. Kennedy | 7,119 | 39.9 | -11.2 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,596 | 20.2 | N/A |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,907 | 40.6 | -15.1 |
  | | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |
  
  General election 1935: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Conservative | George Harvey | 12,401 | 51.1 | -13.2 |
  | | Labour | Leonard Matters | 11,856 | 48.9 | +13.2 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 545 | 2.2 | -26.4 |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,583 | 55.7 | -5.6 |
  | | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
  
  General election 1931: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Conservative | George Harvey | 18,371 | 64.3 | +20.0 |
  | | Labour | Leonard Matters | 10,188 | 35.7 | -20.0 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,183 | 28.6 | N/A |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,600 | 61.3 | +1.2 |
  | | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
  
  ### Elections in the 1920s
  
  General election 1929: Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Labour | Leonard Matters | 15,477 | 55.7 | +12.0 |
  | | Unionist | George Harvey | 12,328 | 44.3 | −12.0 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,149 | 11.4 | N/A |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 27,805 | 60.1 | −10.2 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 46,290 | | |
  | | Labour gain from Unionist | Labour gain from Unionist | Swing | +12.0 | |
  
  General election 1924: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Unionist | George Harvey | 14,898 | 56.3 | +19.5 |
  | | Labour | Thomas Williams | 11,572 | 43.7 | +4.5 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,326 | 12.6 | N/A |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 26,470 | 70.3 | +12.7 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 37,629 | | |
  | | Unionist gain from Labour | Unionist gain from Labour | Swing | +7.5 | |
  
  General election 1923: Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Labour | Thomas Williams | 8,292 | 39.2 | +3.1 |
  | | Unionist | Reginald Blair | 7,782 | 36.8 | −10.5 |
  | | Liberal | Thomas Owen Jacobsen | 5,075 | 24.0 | +7.4 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 510 | 2.4 | N/A |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 21,149 | 57.6 | −0.8 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 36,729 | | |
  | | Labour gain from Unionist | Labour gain from Unionist | Swing | +6.8 | |
  
  General election 1922: Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Unionist | Francis Harrison | 10,081 | 47.3 | +15.1 |
  | | Labour | Harry Gosling | 7,670 | 36.1 | +10.7 |
  | | National Liberal | Henry Purchase | 3,522 | 16.6 | −25.8 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,411 | 11.2 | N/A |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 21,273 | 58.4 | +28.7 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 36,451 | | |
  | | Unionist gain from Liberal | Unionist gain from Liberal | Swing | +20.5 | |
  
  ### Elections in the 1910s
  
  General election 1918: Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | C | Liberal | Henry Purchase | 4,705 | 42.4 | −5.2 |
  | | Unionist | Alice Lucas | 3,573 | 32.2 | −14.7 |
  | | Labour | William Glennie | 2,817 | 25.4 | New |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,132 | 10.2 | +9.5 |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 11,095 | 29.7 | −44.5 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 37,322 | | |
  | | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | +4.8 | |
  | C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. ||||||
  
  General election December 1910: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Liberal | Stephen Collins | 3,565 | 47.6 | −4.7 |
  | | Conservative | Francis Lucas | 3,510 | 46.9 | −0.8 |
  | | Independent Labour | Victor Grayson | 408 | 5.5 | New |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 55 | 0.7 | −3.9 |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,483 | 74.2 | −6.2 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,088 | | |
  | | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | −2.0 | |
  
  General election January 1910: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Liberal | Stephen Collins | 4,246 | 52.3 | −8.0 |
  | | Conservative | Francis Lucas | 3,865 | 47.7 | +8.0 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 381 | 4.6 | −16.0 |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,111 | 80.4 | +6.3 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,088 | | |
  | | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | -8.0 | |
  
  ### Elections in the 1900s
  
  General election 1906: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Liberal | Stephen Collins | 4,639 | 60.3 | +24.8 |
  | | Conservative | Frederick Cook | 3,054 | 39.7 | −24.8 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,585 | 20.6 | N/A |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,693 | 74.1 | +11.8 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,382 | | |
  | | Liberal gain from Conservative | Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +24.8 | |
  
  General election 1900: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Conservative | Frederick Cook | 4,195 | 64.5 | +12.7 |
  | | Liberal | Walter Essex | 2,309 | 35.5 | −2.6 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,886 | 29.0 | +15.3 |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,504 | 62.3 | −9.5 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,432 | | |
  | | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +7.7 | |
  
  ### Elections in the 1890s
  
  General election 1895: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Conservative | Frederick Cook | 3,764 | 51.8 | +6.1 |
  | | Liberal | Mark Beaufoy | 2,769 | 38.1 | −16.2 |
  | | Independent Liberal | William Wightman | 730 | 10.1 | New |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 995 | 13.7 | N/A |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,263 | 71.8 | −4.3 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,117 | | |
  | | Conservative gain from Liberal | Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | +11.2 | |
  
  General election 1892: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Liberal | Mark Beaufoy | 3,860 | 54.3 | +7.9 |
  | | Conservative | Ferdinand Begg | 3,253 | 45.7 | −7.9 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 607 | 8.6 | N/A |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,113 | 76.1 | +3.8 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 9,348 | | |
  | | Liberal gain from Conservative | Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +7.9 | |
  
  ### Elections in the 1880s
  
  By-election, 15 Mar 1889: Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Liberal | Mark Hanbury Beaufoy | 4,069 | 54.2 | +7.8 |
  | | Conservative | Philip Beresford-Hope | 3,439 | 45.8 | −7.8 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 630 | 8.4 | N/A |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,508 | 84.2 | +11.9 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 8,920 | | |
  | | Liberal gain from Conservative | Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +7.8 | |
  
  General election 1886: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Conservative | Robert Gent-Davis | 3,222 | 53.6 | +1.0 |
  | | Liberal | Mark Hanbury Beaufoy | 2,792 | 46.4 | −0.5 |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 430 | 7.2 | +1.5 |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,014 | 72.3 | −4.4 |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 8,313 | | |
  | | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +0.8 | |
  
  General election 1885: Lambeth, Kennington :
  
  | Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | Conservative | Robert Gent-Davis | 3,351 | 52.6 | |
  | | Liberal | John O'Connor Power | 2,991 | 46.9 | |
  | | Social Democratic Federation | John Fielding | 32 | 0.5 | |
  | Majority | Majority | Majority | 360 | 5.7 | |
  | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,374 | 76.7 | |
  | Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 8,313 | | |
  | | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |
  