Abstract
The October 1974 election, unlike its predecessor, produced a clear result — though not a very decisive one. The Labour government secured a majority but only just. Against all expectation, the Conservatives held on in many marginal constituencies and Mr Wilson came back to Westminster with only 319 seats, three more than all other parties combined. Only once before, in 1922, had a party won a clear majority with under 40% of the votes cast.1
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Notes
For a full discussion see D. Butler and U. Kitzinger, The 1975 Referendum, (London, and A. King, Britain Says Yes, (Washington, 1977).
For a fuller discussion of this see Michael Hatfield, The House the Left Built, (London, 1978).
See M. Steed, ‘The National Front Vote’, Parliamentary Affairs, (Summer 1978).
S. Fay and H. Young, The Day the Pound Nearly Died, (London, 1978).
For a full account of the negotiations see Simon Hoggart and Alistair Michie The Pact, (London, 1978)
David Steel’s own account A House Divided, (London, 1979).
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© 1980 David Butler and Dennis Kavanagh
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Butler, D., Kavanagh, D. (1980). The Course of Government 1974–8. In: The British General Election of 1979. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-04755-0_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-04755-0_2
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