# Tonbridge (UK Parliament constituency)

Tonbridge is a parliamentary constituency in Kent, centred on the town of Tonbridge. It returns one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is currently held by Conservative Tom Tugendhat, who was MP for the predecessor seat of Tonbridge and Malling from 2015 to 2024.
The constituency was created for the 1918 general election, replacing the previous Tunbridge constituency. It was abolished for the February 1974 general election, when it was replaced by the new Tonbridge and Malling constituency.
Following the 2023 periodic review of Westminster constituencies, the seat was re-established and was first contested in the 2024 general election, formed primarily from the previous and largely overlapping constituency of Tonbridge and Malling.

## Boundaries
### Historic

1918–1950: The Borough of Royal Tunbridge Wells, the Urban Districts of Tonbridge and Southborough, and Tonbridge Rural District.
1950–1974: As 1918 but with redrawn boundaries.

### Current

The re-established constituency id defined as being composed of the following as they existed on 1 December 2020:
* The District of Sevenoaks wards of: Ash and New Ash Green; Cowden and Hever; Edenbridge North and East; Edenbridge South and West; Hartley and Hodsoll Street; Leigh and Chiddingstone Causeway; Penshurst, Fordcombe and Chiddingstone.
* The Borough of Tonbridge and Malling wards of: Borough Green and Long Mill; Cage Green; Castle; Downs and Mereworth; Hadlow and East Peckham; Higham; Hildenborough; Judd; Medway; Trench; Vauxhall; Wateringbury; Wrotham, Ightham and Stansted.
Following a local government boundary review in Tonbridge and Malling which came into effect in May 2023, the constituency is now composed of the following from the 2024 general election:
* The District of Sevenoaks wards of: Ash and New Ash Green; Cowden and Hever; Edenbridge North and East; Edenbridge South and West; Hartley and Hodsoll Street; Leigh and Chiddingstone Causeway; Penshurst, Fordcombe and Chiddingstone.
* The Borough of Tonbridge and Malling wards of: Birling, Leybourne & Ryarsh (part); Borough Green & Platt; Bourne; Cage Green & Angel; East and West Peckham, Mereworth & Wateringbury; East Malling, West Malling & Offham (small part); Higham; Hildenborough; Judd; Pilgrims with Ightham; Trench; Vauxhall.
The reformed constituency comprises the bulk of the preceding Tonbridge and Malling seat (excluding East and West Malling), plus an additional two District of Sevenoaks wards to the north - Ash and New Ash Green, and Hartley and Hodsoll Street, from the constituencies of Sevenoaks and Dartford respectively.

## Constituency profile

The seat includes the commuter town of Tonbridge and its hinterland to the north, plus the smaller town of Edenbridge further west. Electoral Calculus characterises this area as "Strong Right", with right-wing economic and social views, high home ownership levels and strong support for Brexit.

## Members of Parliament
### MPs 1918–1974

Tunbridge prior to 1918
| Election | Election | Member | Party | Notes |
| | 1918 | Herbert Spender-Clay | Conservative | Died 1937 |
| | 1937 by-election | Sir Adrian Baillie, Bt | Conservative |
| | 1945 | Gerald Williams | Conservative | Resigned 1956 |
| | 1956 by-election | Richard Hornby | Conservative |
| Feb 1974 | Feb 1974 | constituency abolished | constituency abolished |

### MPs since 2024

Tonbridge and Malling prior to 2024
| Election | Election | Member | Party |
| | 2024 | Tom Tugendhat | Conservative |

## Elections
### Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Tom Tugendhat | 20,517 | 40.8 | −24.0 |
| | Labour | Lewis Bailey | 9,351 | 18.6 | +3.5 |
| | Green | Anna Cope | 7,596 | 15.1 | +7.2 |
| | Reform UK | Teresa Hansford | 7,548 | 15.0 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | John Woollcombe | 4,234 | 8.4 | −3.9 |
| | Ind. Alliance | Tim Shaw | 926 | 1.8 | N/A |
| | SDP | Ian Grattidge | 156 | 0.3 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,166 | 22.2 | −27.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 50,328 | 68.3 | −5.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 72,799 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | −13.8 | |

### Elections in the 2010s

2019 notional result :
| Party | Party | Vote | % |
| | Conservative | 35,262 | 64.8 |
| | Labour | 8,210 | 15.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | 6,690 | 12.3 |
| | Green | 4,288 | 7.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | 54,450 | 73.9 |
| Electorate | Electorate | 73,692 |

## Election results 1918–1974
### Elections in the 1910s

General election 1918: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| C | Unionist | Herbert Spender-Clay | 14,622 | 68.1 | |
| | Labour | John Palmer | 5,006 | 23.3 | |
| | Liberal | Thomas Buxton | 1,851 | 8.6 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,616 | 44.8 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 21,479 | 57.4 | |
| | Unionist win (new seat) | Unionist win (new seat) | Unionist win (new seat) | Unionist win (new seat) | Unionist win (new seat) |
| C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. ||||||

### Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Herbert Spender-Clay | 14,797 | 53.0 | −15.1 |
| | Labour | Joseph Thomas Davies | 7,665 | 27.4 | +4.1 |
| | Liberal | Albert Charles Crane | 5,472 | 19.6 | +11.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,132 | 25.6 | −19.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 27,934 | 72.5 | +15.1 |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | | |
General election 1923: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Herbert Spender-Clay | 13,910 | 49.8 | −3.2 |
| | Liberal | Albert Charles Crane | 7,433 | 26.6 | +7.0 |
| | Labour | Joseph Thomas Davis | 6,610 | 23.6 | −3.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,477 | 23.2 | −2.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 27,953 | 70.6 | −1.9 |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | -5.1 | |
General election 1924: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Herbert Spender-Clay | 17,392 | 58.2 | +8.4 |
| | Labour | W F Toynbee | 6,564 | 22.0 | −1.6 |
| | Liberal | James Millard Tucker | 5,898 | 19.8 | −6.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,828 | 36.2 | +13.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 29,854 | 74.3 | +3.7 |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | | |
General election 1929: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Herbert Spender-Clay | 19,018 | 49.8 | −8.4 |
| | Liberal | Gordon Alchin | 10,025 | 26.2 | +6.4 |
| | Labour | W F Toynbee | 9,149 | 24.0 | +2.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,993 | 23.6 | −12.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,192 | 72.3 | −2.0 |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | -7.4 | |

### Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Herbert Spender-Clay | 30,602 | 78.8 | +29.0 |
| | Labour | Constance Borrett | 8,208 | 21.1 | −2.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 22,394 | 57.7 | +34.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,810 | 69.2 | −3.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1935: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Herbert Spender-Clay | 23,460 | 61.3 | −17.5 |
| | Labour | F M Landau | 9,405 | 24.6 | +3.5 |
| | Liberal | Richard Pope-Hennessy | 5,403 | 14.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 14,055 | 36.7 | −21.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,268 | 68.2 | −1.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
1937 Tonbridge by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Adrian Baillie | 18,802 | 56.9 | −4.4 |
| | Labour | H Smith | 8,147 | 24.7 | +0.1 |
| | Liberal | Richard Matthews | 6,073 | 18.4 | +4.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,655 | 32.2 | −4.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,022 | 58.2 | −10.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -2.2 | |
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 and by the Autumn of 1939, the following candidates had been selected;
* Conservative: Adrian Baillie
* Labour: R. E. L. Bowyer
* Liberal: Richard Matthews
* British Union: E J Crawford

### Elections in the 1940s

General election 1945: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Gerald Williams | 23,081 | 49.9 | −7.0 |
| | Labour | Vera Dart | 16,590 | 35.8 | +11.1 |
| | Liberal | John Metcalfe | 5,351 | 11.6 | −6.8 |
| | Ind. Conservative | E F St John Lyburn | 1,249 | 2.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,491 | 14.1 | −18.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,271 | 73.2 | +15.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Gerald Williams | 27,893 | 51.9 |
| | Labour | Brian Clapham | 19,525 | 36.3 |
| | Liberal | Leslie Albert Willard | 5,634 | 10.5 |
| | Ind. Conservative | E F St. John Lyburn | 739 | 1.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,368 | 15.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 53,791 | 83.5 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
General election 1951: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Gerald Williams | 31,377 | 59.8 | +7.9 |
| | Labour | Bernard Bagnari | 21,109 | 40.2 | +3.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,268 | 19.6 | +4.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 52,486 | 80.6 | −2.9 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1955: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Gerald Williams | 29,521 | 60.4 | +0.6 |
| | Labour | Robert L Fagg | 19,325 | 39.6 | −0.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,196 | 20.8 | +1.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,846 | 75.5 | −5.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
1956 Tonbridge by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Richard Hornby | 20,515 | 52.0 | −8.4 |
| | Labour | Robert L Fagg | 18,913 | 48.0 | +8.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,602 | 4.0 | −16.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,428 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1959: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Richard Hornby | 31,687 | 59.9 | −0.5 |
| | Labour | Kenneth W May | 21,181 | 40.1 | +0.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,506 | 19.8 | −1.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 52,868 | 78.5 | +3.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Richard Hornby | 27,802 | 49.2 | −10.7 |
| | Labour | Donald Savage | 19,037 | 33.7 | −6.4 |
| | Liberal | Edward Babbs | 9,682 | 17.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,765 | 15.5 | −4.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,521 | 78.7 | +0.2 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1966: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Richard Hornby | 26,896 | 46.7 | −2.5 |
| | Labour | William Eric Wolff | 20,068 | 34.9 | +1.2 |
| | Liberal | Colin Bloy | 10,586 | 18.4 | +1.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,828 | 11.8 | −3.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 57,550 | 77.3 | −1.4 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Tonbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Richard Hornby | 31,890 | 53.2 | +4.5 |
| | Labour | Maureen Colquhoun | 17,897 | 29.9 | −5.0 |
| | Liberal | Harry Hill | 10,167 | 17.0 | −1.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,993 | 23.3 | +11.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 59,954 | 72.0 | −5.3 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |