# Rugby (UK Parliament constituency)

Rugby is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by John Slinger, of the Labour Party.

## History

Between 1950 and 1979, Rugby was a consistent Labour-Conservative marginal, often bucking the national swing (for example, William Price held the seat for Labour with an increased majority in 1970 while the Wilson government was defeated).
Since its recreation in 2010, the seat produced solid Conservative majorities for Mark Pawsey until 2024, when it was won for Labour by John Slinger.

## Boundaries and boundary changes

1885–1918: When first created in 1885, the Rugby division consisted of the Petty Sessional Divisions of Rugby, Southam, Burton Dassett and Kington, and Kenilworth except the parishes of Lillington and Milverton. The division as recommended by the Boundary Commissioners had a population of 49,291 in the 1881 Census.
1918–1945: Boundary changes in 1918 expanded the constituency to the south, while removing some areas near Leamington Spa. The constituency was defined as consisting of the Urban District of Rugby, the Rural Districts of Farnborough, Monks Kirby, Rugby and Southam, together with the majority of Brailes Rural district (excepting only the two parishes of Ilmington and Stretton-on-Fosse which were in a detached part of Warwickshire). Finally, the division included several parishes which were in the east of Stratford-on-Avon Rural District: Charlcote, Combrook, Compton Verney, Eatington, Kineton, Loxley, Moreton Morrell, Newbold Pacey, Wellesbourne Hastings and Wellesbourne Mountford.
1945–1950: When changes were made to constituency boundaries in 1945 to split up some extremely large constituencies, Rugby was affected by the recommendations made as a result of the growth in electorate in the Coventry constituency. It gained some areas to the east of Coventry which had already been added to Rugby Rural District but were previously part of Nuneaton division. This change added about 2,000 voters.
1950–1983: The constituency was considerably reduced in area in boundary changes which came into effect in 1950, being reduced to simply the Municipal Borough of Rugby and the Rural District of Rugby. No alteration in boundaries was made as part of the First Periodical Review of Boundaries in 1954, and in the Second Periodical Review which came into effect in 1974, the definition remained the same although changes in local government boundaries under The West Midlands Order 1965 and The Coventry Order 1965 meant that a minor change was made.
The Third Periodical Review of constituency boundaries expanded the Rugby constituency to the west. The constituency lost 6,545 of its 60,909 electors, in and around the villages of Ansty and Wolvey, to Nuneaton. It then gained 16,600 electors from Kenilworth, resulting in its renaming as Rugby and Kenilworth.
2010–2024: Under the Fifth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies the Boundary Commission re-established the constituency of Rugby for the 2010 general election as a consequence of the creation of the new constituency of Kenilworth and Southam and the abolition of Rugby and Kenilworth. It had similar boundaries to the 1950-1983 version, containing the following electoral wards:
* Admirals; Avon and Swift; Benn; Bilton; Brownsover North; Brownsover South; Caldecott; Earl Craven and Wolston; Eastlands; Fosse; Hillmorton; Lawford and King's Newnham; New Bilton; Newbold; Overslade; Paddox; Wolvey in Rugby Borough
* Bulkington in the Borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth.
2024–present: Further to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies which came into force for the 2024 general election, the constituency saw very small changes to align boundaries with those of revised wards in the Borough of Rugby; it is defined as being composed of the following (as they existed on 1 December 2020):
* The Borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth ward of Bulkington.
* The Borough of Rugby wards of: Admirals and Cawston; Benn; Bilton; Clifton, Newton and Churchover; Coton and Boughton; Eastlands; Hillmorton; New Bilton; Newbold and Brownsover; Paddox; Revel and Binley Woods; Rokeby and Overslade; Wolston and the Lawfords; Wolvey and Shilton.

## Constituency profile

The constituency consists of Census Output Areas of two local government districts with similar characteristics and that forming the bulk has a working population whose income is slightly above to the national average and lower than average reliance upon social housing. At the end of 2012 the unemployment rate in the constituency stood as 2.3% of the population claiming jobseekers allowance, compared to the regional average of 4.4%.
The borough contributing to the bulk of the seat has a quite low 17.5% of its population without a car, 19.6% of the population without qualifications contrasted with a high 28.2% with level 4 qualifications or above by way of illustration. In terms of tenure 69.5% of homes are owned outright or on a mortgage as at the 2011 census across the district.

## Members of Parliament
### MPs 1885–1983

| Event | Member | Party |
| 1885 | Henry Peyton Cobb | Liberal |
| 1895 | Richard Verney | Conservative |
| 1900 | Corrie Grant | Liberal |
| Jan 1910 | John Baird | Conservative |
| 1922 | Euan Wallace | Conservative |
| 1923 | Ernest Brown | Liberal |
| 1924 | David Margesson | Conservative |
| 1942 by-election | William Brown | Independent |
| 1950 | James Johnson | Labour |
| 1959 | Roy Wise | Conservative |
| 1966 | William Price | Labour |
| 1979 | Jim Pawsey | Conservative |
| 1983 | constituency abolished | constituency abolished |

### MPs since 2010

| Election | Election | Member | Party |
| | 2010 | Mark Pawsey | Conservative |
| | 2024 | John Slinger | Labour |

## Elections
### Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Slinger | 19,533 | 39.9 | +8.8 |
| | Conservative | Yousef Dahmash | 15,105 | 30.8 | −26.5 |
| | Reform UK | Devenne Kedward | 8,225 | 16.8 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Richard Dickson | 3,252 | 6.6 | −1.7 |
| | Green | Becca Stevenson | 2,556 | 5.2 | +1.9 |
| | Independent | Mark Townsend | 215 | 0.4 | N/A |
| | Independent | Anand Swayamprakasam | 118 | 0.2 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,428 | 9.1 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 49,004 | 65.4 | −4.8 |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +17.6 | |

### Elections in the 2010s

General election 2019: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Mark Pawsey | 29,255 | 57.6 | +3.3 |
| | Labour | Debbie Bannagan | 15,808 | 31.1 | −7.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Rana Das-Gupta | 4,207 | 8.3 | +2.7 |
| | Green | Rebecca Stevenson | 1,544 | 3.0 | +1.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,447 | 26.5 | +10.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 50,814 | 70.2 | −0.9 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +5.3 | |
General election 2017: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Mark Pawsey | 27,872 | 54.3 | +5.2 |
| | Labour | Claire Edwards | 19,660 | 38.3 | +10.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Jerry Roodhouse | 2,851 | 5.6 | −0.2 |
| | Green | Graham Bliss | 953 | 1.9 | −1.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,212 | 16.0 | −5.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 51,336 | 71.1 | +1.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -2.6 | |
General election 2015: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Mark Pawsey | 24,040 | 49.1 | +5.1 |
| | Labour | Claire Edwards | 13,695 | 27.9 | −3.5 |
| | UKIP | Gordon Davies | 6,855 | 14.0 | +13.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ed Goncalves | 2,776 | 5.8 | −14.1 |
| | Green | Terry White | 1,415 | 2.9 | +1.9 |
| | TUSC | Peter McLaren | 225 | 0.5 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,345 | 21.2 | +8.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 49,006 | 70.1 | +1.2 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +4.25 | |
General election 2010: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Mark Pawsey | 20,901 | 44.0 | |
| | Labour | Andy King | 14,901 | 31.4 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Jerry Roodhouse | 9,434 | 19.9 | |
| | BNP | Mark Badrick | 1,375 | 2.9 | |
| | Green | Roy Sandison | 451 | 1.0 | |
| | UKIP | Barry Milford | 406 | 0.9 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,000 | 12.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,468 | 68.9 | |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |

## Election results 1885-1983
### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1885: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Henry Peyton Cobb | 4,877 | 58.0 | |
| | Conservative | James Darlington | 3,533 | 42.0 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,344 | 16.0 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,410 | 86.7 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 9,700 | | |
| | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) |
General election 1886: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Henry Peyton Cobb | 4,006 | 53.2 | −4.8 |
| | Liberal Unionist | Marston Clarke Buszard | 3,528 | 46.8 | +4.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 478 | 6.4 | −9.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,534 | 77.0 | −9.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 9,700 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | −4.8 | |

### Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Henry Peyton Cobb | 4,519 | 54.1 | +0.9 |
| | Conservative | William Johnson Galloway | 3,831 | 45.9 | −0.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 688 | 8.2 | +1.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,350 | 85.3 | +8.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 9,785 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | +0.9 | |
General election 1895: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Richard Verney | 4,354 | 51.7 | +5.8 |
| | Liberal | Corrie Grant | 4,070 | 48.3 | −5.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 284 | 3.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,424 | 86.2 | +0.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 9,777 | | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal | Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | +5.8 | |

### Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Corrie Grant | 4,349 | 51.3 | +3.0 |
| | Conservative | F. E. Muntz | 4,130 | 48.7 | −3.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 219 | 2.6 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,479 | 82.4 | −3.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,284 | | |
| | Liberal gain from Conservative | Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +3.0 | |
General election 1906: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Corrie Grant | 5,181 | 51.3 | 0.0 |
| | Conservative | Arthur Steel-Maitland | 4,909 | 48.7 | 0.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 272 | 2.6 | 0.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,090 | 88.1 | +5.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,451 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | +0.0 | |

### Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Baird | 6,191 | 55.4 | +6.7 |
| | Liberal | Rupert Scott | 4,986 | 44.6 | −6.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,205 | 10.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 11,177 | 91.1 | +3.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 12,275 | | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal | Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | +6.7 | |
General election December 1910: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Baird | 5,712 | 53.6 | −1.8 |
| | Liberal | A. F. B. Williams | 4,941 | 46.4 | +1.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 771 | 7.2 | −3.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,653 | 86.8 | −4.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 12,275 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | −1.8 | |
General election 1918: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| C | Unionist | John Baird | 11,325 | 60.5 | +6.9 |
| | Liberal | Oscar Frederick Maclagan | 7,399 | 39.5 | −6.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,926 | 21.0 | +13.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 18,724 | 59.0 | −27.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 31,726 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | +6.9 | |
| C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. ||||||

### Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Euan Wallace | 11,934 | 47.6 | −12.9 |
| | Liberal | George Peel | 8,196 | 32.7 | −6.8 |
| | Labour | T H Holt-Hughes | 4,940 | 19.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,738 | 14.9 | −6.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 25,070 | 76.9 | +17.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 32,599 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −3.1 | |
General election 1923: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Ernest Brown | 13,798 | 55.0 | +22.3 |
| | Unionist | Euan Wallace | 11,286 | 45.0 | −2.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,512 | 10.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 25,084 | 75.2 | −1.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 33,363 | | |
| | Liberal gain from Unionist | Liberal gain from Unionist | Swing | +12.5 | |
General election 1924: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | David Margesson | 14,434 | 50.2 | +5.2 |
| | Liberal | Ernest Brown | 10,524 | 36.6 | −18.4 |
| | Labour | H Yates | 3,768 | 13.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,910 | 13.6 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 28,726 | 84.7 | +9.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 33,903 | | |
| | Unionist gain from Liberal | Unionist gain from Liberal | Swing | +11.9 | |
General election 1929: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | David Margesson | 15,147 | 41.1 | −9.1 |
| | Labour | John Morgan | 11,588 | 31.4 | +18.3 |
| | Liberal | Robert Bernays | 10,158 | 27.5 | −9.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,559 | 9.7 | −4.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 36,893 | 84.8 | +0.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 43,515 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −13.8 | |

### Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | David Margesson | 24,493 | 69.95 |
| | Labour | E. J. Pay | 10,523 | 30.05 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,970 | 39.90 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 35,016 | 78.93 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
General election 1935: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | David Margesson | 20,905 | 61.6 | −8.3 |
| | Labour | H William Fenner | 13,061 | 38.5 | +8.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,844 | 23.1 | −16.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,966 | 73.8 | −5.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General Election 1939–40:
Another general election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place from 1939 and by the end of this year, the following candidates had been selected;
* Conservative: David Margesson
* Liberal: M E Avery
* Labour: A E Millett

### Elections in the 1940s

1942 Rugby by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent | William Brown | 9,824 | 51.8 | New |
| | Conservative | Claude Vivian Holbrook | 9,145 | 48.2 | −13.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 679 | 3.6 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 18,969 | 38.5 | −35.3 |
| | Independent gain from Conservative | Independent gain from Conservative | Swing | | |
General election 1945: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent | William Brown | 18,615 | 40.4 | N/A |
| | Conservative | John Lakin | 17,049 | 37.0 | −24.6 |
| | Labour | Ronald Lewis | 10,470 | 22.7 | −15.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,566 | 3.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,144 | 73.6 | −0.2 |
| | Independent gain from Conservative | Independent gain from Conservative | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | James Johnson | 15,983 | 41.0 | +27.3 |
| | Conservative | James Dance | 14,947 | 38.3 | +1.6 |
| | Independent | William Brown | 8,080 | 20.7 | −19.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,036 | 2.7 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,010 | 88.2 | +14.6 |
| | Labour gain from Independent | Labour gain from Independent | Swing | | |
General election 1951: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | James Johnson | 19,995 | 50.3 | +0.3 |
| | Conservative | James Dance | 19,796 | 49.7 | +11.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 199 | 0.5 | −2.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,808 | 87.7 | −0.5 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 1955: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | James Johnson | 19,709 | 50.1 | −0.2 |
| | Conservative | Harold Soref | 18,331 | 46.6 | −3.1 |
| | Independent | Eric H Shafer | 1,274 | 3.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,378 | 3.5 | +3.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,293 | 85.4 | −2.3 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 1959: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roy Wise | 17,429 | 42.6 | −4.0 |
| | Labour | James Johnson | 16,959 | 41.4 | −8.7 |
| | Liberal | Simon Goldblatt | 6,413 | 15.7 | New |
| | Independent | Archie S Frost | 142 | 0.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 470 | 1.2 | −2.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,924 | 85.6 | +0.2 |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roy Wise | 19,221 | 45.1 | +2.5 |
| | Labour | D.H. Childs | 17,532 | 41.2 | −0.2 |
| | Liberal | Simon Goldblatt | 5,522 | 13.0 | −2.7 |
| | Social Credit | Archie S Frost | 304 | 0.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,689 | 3.9 | +2.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 42,580 | 84.6 | −1.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1966: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | William Price | 21,797 | 50.0 | +8.8 |
| | Conservative | Roy Wise | 21,388 | 49.0 | +3.9 |
| | Social Credit | Archie S Frost | 397 | 0.9 | +0.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 409 | 1.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,579 | 84.9 | +0.3 |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | William Price | 25,041 | 52.8 | +2.8 |
| | Conservative | J.H.P. Griffith | 22,086 | 46.6 | −2.4 |
| | Social Credit | Archie S Frost | 254 | 0.5 | −0.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,955 | 6.2 | +5.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,381 | 81.8 | −3.1 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election February 1974: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | William Price | 25,176 | 49.5 | −3.4 |
| | Conservative | Tim Boswell | 19,022 | 37.4 | −9.2 |
| | Liberal | J. Campbell | 6,560 | 12.9 | New |
| | Social Credit | Archie S Frost | 106 | 0.2 | −0.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,154 | 12.1 | −5.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 50,884 | 86.2 | +4.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election October 1974: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | William Price | 22,926 | 48.2 | −1.3 |
| | Conservative | Tony Marlow | 17,722 | 37.3 | −0.1 |
| | Liberal | A. Butcher | 6,775 | 14.3 | +1.4 |
| | Social Credit | Archie S Frost | 137 | 0.3 | +0.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,204 | 10.9 | −1.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,560 | 79.8 | −6.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 1979: Rugby :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Jim Pawsey | 24,417 | 47.3 | +10.0 |
| | Labour | William Price | 21,688 | 42.0 | −6.2 |
| | Liberal | B. Lomax | 4,945 | 9.6 | −4.7 |
| | National Front | A. Gresham | 551 | 1.0 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,729 | 5.3 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 51,603 | 83.9 | +4.1 |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |