# Oldham East and Saddleworth (UK Parliament constituency)

Oldham East and Saddleworth is a constituency in outer Greater Manchester represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since January 2011 by Debbie Abrahams of the Labour Party.

## Constituency profile

Oldham East and Saddleworth is the largest constituency in Greater Manchester by area, and is one of three covering the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham. According to the Manchester Evening News it is "... a juxtaposition of downbeat urban terraces and the rolling Pennine hills."
UK Polling Report describes it as "a constituency at the eastern side of Greater Manchester, reaching from central Oldham up into the Pennines and Saddleworth Moor". It characterises East Oldham as "an area of deprived terraces and racial tensions", Shaw and Crompton as "relatively prosperous" and Saddleworth as composed of "middle-class villages and hamlets".
Within its bounds are the eastern fringes of Oldham (such as Derker, Glodwick, Greenacres, and Sholver), Shaw and Crompton, Lees, and Saddleworth (the latter of which includes the rural villages of Delph, Denshaw, Diggle, Dobcross, Greenfield and Uppermill). Between 1997 and 2010, Oldham East and Saddleworth incorporated the suburban town of Milnrow in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale when boundary changes placed it in the neighbouring Rochdale constituency.
For the 2011 by-election The Guardian described the constituency as "[Culturally] ... a shotgun marriage [likened to] ... Coronation Street meets Last of the Summer Wine, Salford combined with Holmfirth."

## History

The seat was established for the 1997 general election from parts of the former Littleborough and Saddleworth and Oldham Central and Royton constituencies. Oldham Central and Royton was a safe Labour seat whereas Littleborough and Saddleworth had had a Conservative MP, Geoffrey Dickens, from its creation until a 1995 close three-party fought by-election where it was lost to a Liberal Democrat. Ahead of the 1997 general election the new seat was notionally Conservative, though from 1997 to 2011 the seat was a Labour/Liberal Democrat marginal; Phil Woolas of the Labour Party (defeated candidate in the 1995 by-election) was victorious in all four general elections in that period, but his majorities were not substantial and the Conservative vote increased from 16% to 24%.
At the 2001 general election, the far-right British National Party gained over 5,000 votes (an 11.2% share), retaining their deposit partly as Nick Griffin stood in the neighbouring West seat. Along with the BNP's showing in the neighbouring Oldham West and Royton constituency, this was interpreted as a reaction to the 2001 Oldham race riots. At the 2005 election the BNP's share of the vote dropped to 4.9%.
For the 2010 general election the seat lost the Milnrow and Newhey ward to the neighbouring Rochdale constituency and gained part of Alexandra ward from Oldham West and Royton.
After losing the 2010 general election by 103 votes, Liberal Democrat candidate Elwyn Watkins submitted a petition for a hearing by an election court, claiming that campaign literature issued by his Labour opponent Phil Woolas breached the Representation of the People Act 1983 by making false statements about his personal character. On 5 November 2010, the election court upheld the petition and declared the election void after reporting Phil Woolas guilty of making false election statements. Woolas sought a judicial review of the decision in the Administrative Division of the High Court, which upheld the decision of the Election Court in relation to two statements, whilst quashing the decision in relation to a third. As a result, the 2011 Oldham East and Saddleworth by-election was needed. By the time it was held, the Liberal Democrats had supported an increase in tuition fees, despite a manifesto commitment to oppose any such increase. This caused a significant drop in their polling numbers nationally, but one media report nevertheless stated the seat was "ultra-marginal between Labour and the Liberal Democrats". The by-election took place on 13 January 2011 and was contested by ten candidates. The Labour Party candidate Debbie Abrahams won, and held the seat in subsequent general elections.

## Boundaries

1997–2010: The Metropolitan Borough of Oldham wards of Crompton, Lees, St James', St Mary's, Saddleworth East, Saddleworth West, Shaw, and Waterhead, and the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale ward of Milnrow.
2010–present: The Metropolitan Borough of Oldham wards of Alexandra, Crompton, St James', St Mary's, Saddleworth North, Saddleworth South, Saddleworth West and Lees, Shaw, and Waterhead.
The 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, which was based on the ward structure in place at 1 December 2020, left the boundaries unchanged.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Election | Member | Party | Notes |
| | 1997 | Phil Woolas | Labour | |
| | 2011 by-election | Debbie Abrahams | Labour | Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (2016-2018) |

## Elections
### Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Oldham East and Saddleworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Debbie Abrahams | 14,091 | 35.2 | −8.3 |
| | Reform UK | Jacob Barden | 7,734 | 19.3 | +12.8 |
| | Conservative | Tom Fish | 6,838 | 17.1 | −23.2 |
| | Workers Party | Shanaz Saddique | 4,647 | 11.6 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Sam Al-Hamdani | 3,386 | 8.5 | +3.3 |
| | Green | Fesl Reza-Khan | 1,490 | 3.7 | +2.0 |
| | Independent | Paul Errock | 1,362 | 3.4 | N/A |
| | Independent | Nick Buckley | 517 | 1.3 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,357 | 15.9 | +12.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,065 | 54.8 | −8.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 72,760 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -10.6 | |

### Elections in the 2010s

General election 2019: Oldham East and Saddleworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Debbie Abrahams | 20,088 | 43.5 | −11.0 |
| | Conservative | Tom Lord | 18,589 | 40.3 | +3.2 |
| | Brexit Party | Paul Brierley | 2,980 | 6.5 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Sam Al-Hamdani | 2,423 | 5.2 | +1.6 |
| | Proud of Oldham & Saddleworth | Paul Errock | 1,073 | 2.3 | N/A |
| | Green | Wendy Olsen | 778 | 1.7 | N/A |
| | Independent | Amoy Lindo | 233 | 0.5 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,503 | 3.2 | −14.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,164 | 64.0 | −1.3 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -7.1 | |
General election 2017: Oldham East and Saddleworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Debbie Abrahams | 25,629 | 54.5 | +15.1 |
| | Conservative | Kashif Ali | 17,447 | 37.1 | +11.2 |
| | UKIP | Ian Bond | 2,278 | 4.8 | −14.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Jonathan Smith | 1,683 | 3.6 | −9.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,182 | 17.4 | +3.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,037 | 65.3 | +3.5 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +2.0 | |
General election 2015: Oldham East and Saddleworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Debbie Abrahams | 17,529 | 39.4 | +7.5 |
| | Conservative | Sajjad Hussain | 11,527 | 25.9 | −0.5 |
| | UKIP | Peter Klonowski | 8,557 | 19.2 | +15.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Richard Marbrow | 5,718 | 12.9 | −18.7 |
| | Green | Miranda Meadowcroft | 1,152 | 2.6 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,002 | 13.5 | +13.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,483 | 61.8 | +0.6 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +4.0 | |
By-election 2011: Oldham East and Saddleworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Debbie Abrahams | 14,718 | 42.1 | +10.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Elwyn Watkins | 11,160 | 31.9 | +0.3 |
| | Conservative | Kashif Ali | 4,481 | 12.8 | −13.6 |
| | UKIP | Paul Nuttall | 2,029 | 5.8 | +1.9 |
| | BNP | Derek Adams | 1,560 | 4.5 | −1.2 |
| | Green | Peter Allen | 530 | 1.5 | N/A |
| | Monster Raving Loony | Nick "The Flying Brick" Delves | 145 | 0.4 | N/A |
| | English Democrat | Stephen Morris | 144 | 0.4 | N/A |
| | Pirate | Loz Kaye | 96 | 0.3 | N/A |
| | Bus-Pass Elvis | David Bishop | 67 | 0.1 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,558 | 10.2 | +9.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 34,930 | 48.0 | −13.2 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +4.95 | |
General election 2010: Oldham East and Saddleworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Phil Woolas | 14,186 | 31.9 | −10.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Elwyn Watkins | 14,083 | 31.6 | −0.5 |
| | Conservative | Kashif Ali | 11,773 | 26.4 | +8.7 |
| | BNP | Alwyn Stott | 2,546 | 5.7 | +0.8 |
| | UKIP | David Bentley | 1,720 | 3.9 | +1.8 |
| | Christian | Gulzar Nazir | 212 | 0.5 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 103 | 0.3 | −10.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,520 | 61.2 | +4.4 |
| Void election result | Void election result | Void election result | Swing | −5.1 | |

### Elections in the 2000s

General election 2005: Oldham East and Saddleworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Phil Woolas | 17,968 | 41.4 | +2.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Tony Dawson | 14,378 | 33.2 | +0.6 |
| | Conservative | Keith Chapman | 7,901 | 18.2 | +2.1 |
| | BNP | Michael Treacy | 2,109 | 4.9 | −6.3 |
| | UKIP | Valerie Nield | 873 | 2.0 | +0.5 |
| | Independent | Philip O'Grady | 138 | 0.3 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,590 | 8.2 | +2.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,367 | 57.3 | −3.7 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +1.1 | |
General election 2001: Oldham East and Saddleworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Phil Woolas | 17,537 | 38.6 | −3.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Howard Sykes | 14,811 | 32.6 | −2.8 |
| | Conservative | Craig Heeley | 7,304 | 16.1 | −3.6 |
| | BNP | Michael Treacy | 5,091 | 11.2 | N/A |
| | UKIP | Barbara Little | 677 | 1.5 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,726 | 6.0 | −0.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,420 | 61.0 | −12.9 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +0.13 | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1997: Oldham East and Saddleworth :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Phil Woolas | 22,546 | 41.7 | +11.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Chris Davies | 19,157 | 35.4 | +1.0 |
| | Conservative | John Hudson | 10,666 | 19.7 | −15.7 |
| | Referendum | Douglas Findlay | 1,116 | 2.0 | |
| | Socialist Labour | John Smith | 470 | 0.9 | |
| | Natural Law | Ian Dalling | 146 | 0.3 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,389 | 6.3 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 54,101 | 73.92 | |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |
Chris Davies was MP for the former Littleborough and Saddleworth seat since the 1995 by-election.