# Foyle (UK Parliament constituency)

Foyle is a constituency in Northern Ireland covering Derry, represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. Its current Member of Parliament (MP) has been Colum Eastwood of the SDLP since 2019.

## Boundaries

The seat was created in boundary changes in 1983, as part of an expansion of Northern Ireland's constituencies from 12 to 17, and was predominantly made up from the old Londonderry constituency. From further revisions in 1995 (when it lost parts of the district of Strabane to the West Tyrone constituency), and until the 2008 revision, it covered exactly the same area as Derry City Council.
Prior to the 2010 general election the transfer of Claudy and Banagher wards to East Londonderry were approved through the passing of the Northern Ireland Parliamentary Constituencies Order in 2008.
Prior to the 2024 general election, Claudy and Eglinton were transferred to East Londonderry, and Slievekirk was transferred to West Tyrone.
The constituency is currently composed of the following wards of the District of Derry and Strabane:
* Ballymagroarty, Brandywell, Carn Hill, Caw, City Walls, Clondermot, Creggan, Creggan South, Culmore, Drumahoe, Ebrington, Enagh, Foyle Springs, Galliagh, Kilfennan, Lisnagelvin, Madam's Bank, New Buildings, Northland, Shantallow, Shantallow East, Sheriff's Mountain, Skeoge, Springtown, and Victoria.

## Constituency profile

The name comes from the River Foyle which the city lies on and is used to avoid the contentious names of Derry or Londonderry, as well as to cover the areas of County Tyrone that were originally in the constituency. The seat is nationalist-leaning and residents' wealth is below average for the UK.
The wards within the constituency are among the poorest in the UK with high unemployment, high welfare dependency and the lowest employment rate for Northern Ireland.
The seat has typically been an SDLP stronghold however in 2017 Sinn Féin gained the seat for the first time with the smallest majority in Northern Ireland of 169. In 2019 SDLP leader Colum Eastwood won the seat back with an 18% swing and 17,000 majority.

## History

At the seat's creation at the 1983 general election, SDLP leader John Hume won the new seat, becoming the party's only MP after it lost Belfast West to Sinn Féin. Hume retained the seat until his retirement at the 2005 general election, when he was succeeded by the SDLP's Mark Durkan.
Durkan retained the seat in 2010. This seat also gave the Alliance Party their worst share of the vote in Northern Ireland, polling just 0.6% of the votes. Durkan was re-elected to a third term in 2015, increasing his share of the vote to 47.9% and winning a majority of 6,046 votes.
In the 2016 referendum to leave the European Union, the constituency was estimated to have voted remain by 78.3%. This was the sixth highest support for remain for a constituency, and the highest support for remain in Northern Ireland.
In the 2017 election, the seat was won by Elisha McCallion of Sinn Féin, who won with a majority of just 169 votes over Mark Durkan. Following the election, concerns about electoral malpractice were raised with the Electoral Office by the SDLP and People Before Profit's Eamonn McCann.
In the 2019 election, the seat was recaptured by SDLP leader Colum Eastwood. Sinn Féin's vote share dropped significantly from 39.7% in 2017 to 20.7% in 2019, which was the lowest percentage share that that party had won in any general election in the constituency since 1992.

## Members of Parliament

The Member of Parliament since the 2019 UK General Election is Colum Eastwood of the SDLP. He succeeded Elisha McCallion of Sinn Féin to regain the seat which the SDLP had held from its 1983 creation until 2017. The constituency was previously represented by John Hume, former leader of the SDLP and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.
| Election | Member | Party |
| 1983 | John Hume | SDLP |
| 2005 | Mark Durkan | SDLP |
| 2017 | Elisha McCallion | Sinn Féin |
| 2019 | Colum Eastwood | SDLP |

## Elections
### Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Foyle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDLP | Colum Eastwood | 15,647 | 40.8 | −17.4 |
| | Sinn Féin | Sandra Duffy | 11,481 | 29.9 | +8.7 |
| | DUP | Gary Middleton | 3,915 | 10.2 | +1.5 |
| | People Before Profit | Shaun Harkin | 2,444 | 6.4 | +3.6 |
| | Independent | Anne McCloskey | 1,519 | 4.0 | New |
| | UUP | Janice Montgomery | 1,422 | 3.7 | +1.7 |
| | Alliance | Rachael Ferguson | 1,268 | 3.3 | +0.6 |
| | Aontú | John Boyle | 662 | 1.7 | −2.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,166 | 10.9 | −25.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,358 | 52.2 | −11.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 73,496 | | |
| | SDLP hold | SDLP hold | Swing | -13.1 | |

### Elections in the 2010s

General election 2019: Foyle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDLP | Colum Eastwood | 26,881 | 57.0 | +17.7 |
| | Sinn Féin | Elisha McCallion | 9,771 | 20.7 | ―19.0 |
| | DUP | Gary Middleton | 4,773 | 10.1 | ―6.0 |
| | Aontú | Anne McCloskey | 2,032 | 4.3 | New |
| | People Before Profit | Shaun Harkin | 1,332 | 2.8 | ―0.2 |
| | Alliance | Rachael Ferguson | 1,267 | 2.7 | +0.9 |
| | UUP | Darren Guy | 1,088 | 2.3 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 17,110 | 36.3 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,144 | 63.4 | ―2.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 74,360 | | |
| | SDLP gain from Sinn Féin | SDLP gain from Sinn Féin | Swing | +18.4 | |
This seat saw the largest decrease in vote share for Sinn Féin at the 2019 general election.
General election 2017: Foyle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Sinn Féin | Elisha McCallion | 18,256 | 39.7 | +8.1 |
| | SDLP | Mark Durkan | 18,087 | 39.3 | ―8.6 |
| | DUP | Gary Middleton | 7,398 | 16.1 | +3.7 |
| | People Before Profit | Shaun Harkin | 1,377 | 3.0 | New |
| | Alliance | John Doherty | 847 | 1.8 | ―0.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 169 | 0.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,136 | 65.4 | +12.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 70,324 | | |
| | Sinn Féin gain from SDLP | Sinn Féin gain from SDLP | Swing | +8.3 | |
General election 2015: Foyle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDLP | Mark Durkan | 17,725 | 47.9 | +3.2 |
| | Sinn Féin | Gearóid Ó Heára | 11,679 | 31.6 | ―0.3 |
| | DUP | Gary Middleton | 4,573 | 12.4 | +0.6 |
| | UUP | Julia Kee | 1,226 | 3.3 | +0.1 |
| | Alliance | David Hawthorne | 835 | 2.3 | +1.7 |
| | UKIP | Kyle Thompson | 832 | 2.2 | New |
| | NI Conservatives | Hamish Badenoch | 132 | 0.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,046 | 16.3 | +3.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 37,002 | 52.8 | ―4.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 70,036 | | |
| | SDLP hold | SDLP hold | Swing | +1.8 | |
General election 2010: Foyle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDLP | Mark Durkan | 16,922 | 44.7 | ―1.7 |
| | Sinn Féin | Martina Anderson | 12,098 | 31.9 | ―1.4 |
| | DUP | Maurice Devenney | 4,489 | 11.8 | ―2.2 |
| | People Before Profit | Eamonn McCann | 2,936 | 7.7 | New |
| | UCU-NF | David Harding | 1,221 | 3.2 | +0.9 |
| | Alliance | Keith McGrellis | 223 | 0.6 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,824 | 12.8 | ―0.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 37,889 | 57.5 | ―12.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 65,843 | | |
| | SDLP hold | SDLP hold | Swing | ―0.2 | |

### Elections in the 2000s

General election 2005: Foyle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDLP | Mark Durkan | 21,119 | 46.3 | ―3.9 |
| | Sinn Féin | Mitchel McLaughlin | 15,162 | 33.2 | +6.6 |
| | DUP | William Hay | 6,557 | 14.4 | ―0.8 |
| | Socialist Environmental | Eamonn McCann | 1,649 | 3.6 | New |
| | UUP | Earl Storey | 1,091 | 2.4 | ―4.5 |
| | Rainbow Dream Ticket | Ben Reel | 31 | 0.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,957 | 13.1 | ―10.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,609 | 65.9 | ―3.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 68,758 | | |
| | SDLP hold | SDLP hold | Swing | ―5.3 | |
General election 2001: Foyle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDLP | John Hume | 24,538 | 50.2 | ―2.3 |
| | Sinn Féin | Mitchel McLaughlin | 12,988 | 26.6 | +2.7 |
| | DUP | William Hay | 7,414 | 15.2 | ―6.3 |
| | UUP | Andrew Davidson | 3,360 | 6.9 | New |
| | Alliance | Colm Cavanagh | 579 | 1.2 | ―0.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,550 | 23.6 | ―5.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,879 | 68.9 | ―1.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 70,943 | | |
| | SDLP hold | SDLP hold | Swing | ―2.5 | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1997: Foyle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDLP | John Hume | 25,109 | 52.5 | +1.0 |
| | Sinn Féin | Mitchel McLaughlin | 11,445 | 23.9 | +6.3 |
| | DUP | William Hay | 10,290 | 21.5 | ―4.9 |
| | Alliance | Helen-Marie Bell | 817 | 1.7 | ―1.0 |
| | Natural Law | Donn Brennan | 154 | 0.3 | ―0.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,664 | 28.6 | +3.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,815 | 70.4 | +0.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 67,905 | | |
| | SDLP hold | SDLP hold | Swing | ―4.0 | |
General election 1992: Foyle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDLP | John Hume | 26,710 | 51.5 | +2.7 |
| | DUP | Gregory Lloyd Campbell | 13,705 | 26.4 | ―2.2 |
| | Sinn Féin | Martin McGuinness | 9,149 | 17.6 | ―0.3 |
| | Alliance | Lara McIlroy | 1,390 | 2.7 | +0.1 |
| | Workers' Party | Gordon McKenzie | 514 | 1.0 | ―1.1 |
| | Natural Law | John Burns | 422 | 0.8 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,005 | 25.1 | +4.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 51,890 | 69.5 | +0.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 74,673 | | |
| | SDLP hold | SDLP hold | Swing | +2.5 | |

### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1987: Foyle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDLP | John Hume | 23,743 | 48.8 | +2.8 |
| | DUP | Gregory Lloyd Campbell | 13,883 | 28.6 | ―1.9 |
| | Sinn Féin | Martin McGuinness | 8,707 | 17.9 | ―2.4 |
| | Alliance | Elizabeth Zammitt | 1,276 | 2.6 | +0.5 |
| | Workers' Party | Eamonn Melaugh | 1,022 | 2.1 | +1.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,860 | 20.2 | +4.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,631 | 69.0 | ―8.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 70,519 | | |
| | SDLP hold | SDLP hold | Swing | +2.4 | |
General election 1983: Foyle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDLP | John Hume | 24,071 | 46.0 | |
| | DUP | Gregory Lloyd Campbell | 15,923 | 30.5 | |
| | Sinn Féin | Martin McGuinness | 10,607 | 20.3 | |
| | Alliance | Gerard O'Grady | 1,108 | 2.1 | |
| | Workers' Party | Eamonn Melaugh | 582 | 1.1 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,148 | 15.5 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 52,291 | 77.6 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 66,976 | | |
| | SDLP win (new seat) | SDLP win (new seat) | SDLP win (new seat) | SDLP win (new seat) | SDLP win (new seat) |