# Rutland and Stamford (UK Parliament constituency)

Rutland and Stamford is a county constituency comprising the area of Lincolnshire centred on the town of Stamford; the county of Rutland; and also parts of rural Leicestershire, making it a very unusual parliamentary constituency in that it spans three counties. It returns one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, using the first-past-the-post voting system. Since the 2024 general election, the Member of Parliament for Rutland and Stamford is Alicia Kearns.

## History

The constituency was originally created for the 1918 general election, and abolished for the 1983 general election. It was succeeded by the Rutland and Melton and Stamford and Spalding constituencies.
Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the seat was re-established for the 2024 general election.

## Boundaries
### Historic

1918–1950: The administrative county of Rutland, the Municipal Borough of Stamford, the Urban District of Bourne, the Rural Districts of Bourne and Uffington, and part of the Rural District of Grantham.
1950–1983: The administrative county of Rutland, the Municipal Borough of Stamford, the Urban District of Bourne, the Rural District of South Kesteven, and parts of the Rural Districts of East Kesteven and West Kesteven.

### Current

The re-established constituency is composed of the following (as they existed on 1 December 2020):
* The District of Harborough wards of: Billesdon & Tilton; Nevill; Thurnby & Houghton.
* The District of Rutland.
* The District of South Kesteven wards of: Casewick; Castle; Dole Wood; Glen; Isaac Newton; Stamford All Saints; Stamford St. George’s; Stamford St. John’s; Stamford St. Mary’s.
It includes the following areas:
* The County of Rutland and the parts of Harborough District, including Thurnby, from the abolished constituency of Rutland and Melton
* The town of Stamford and surrounding areas from Grantham and Stamford, which has been largely replaced by Grantham and Bourne.

## Members of Parliament
### MPs 1918–1983

Rutland and Stamford prior to 1918
| Election | Member | Party |
| 1918 | Claud Heathcote-Drummond-Willoughby | Conservative |
| 1922 | Charles Harvey Dixon | Conservative |
| 1923 by-election | Neville Smith-Carington | Conservative |
| 1933 by-election | Lord Willoughby de Eresby | Conservative |
| 1950 | Sir Roger Conant | Conservative |
| 1959 | Kenneth Lewis | Conservative |
| 1983 | Constituency abolished. See Rutland & Melton and Stamford & Spalding | Constituency abolished. See Rutland & Melton and Stamford & Spalding |
In 1983 Rutland became part of the Rutland and Melton constituency along with Melton borough and part of Harborough District in Leicestershire.

### MPs since 2024

Rutland & Melton and Grantham & Stamford prior to 2024
| Election | Election | Member | Party |
| | 2024 | Alicia Kearns | Conservative |

## Elections
### Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Alicia Kearns | 21,248 | 43.7 | −19.6 |
| | Labour | Joe Wood | 10,854 | 22.3 | +7.6 |
| | Reform UK | Chris Clowes | 7,008 | 14.4 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | James Moore | 6,252 | 12.9 | −2.9 |
| | Green | Emma Baker | 2,806 | 5.8 | +2.2 |
| | Rejoin EU | Joanna Burrows | 409 | 0.8 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,394 | 21.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,577 | 67.9 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 71,711 | | |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |
Reform UK removed Ginny Ball as its candidate in March 2024 after "exposure of a range of racist comments on her social media feed".

## Elections 1918–1983
### Elections in the 1910s

General election 1918: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| C | Unionist | Claud Heathcote-Drummond-Willoughby | 8,838 | 53.6 | |
| | Labour | Fleming Eccles | 7,639 | 46.4 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,199 | 7.2 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 16,477 | 61.8 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 26,647 | | |
| | 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: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Charles Harvey Dixon | 10,278 | 46.8 | −6.8 |
| | Labour | Fleming Eccles | 7,236 | 32.9 | −13.5 |
| | National Farmers' Union | Edward Clark | 4,471 | 20.3 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,042 | 13.9 | +6.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 21,985 | 81.2 | +19.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 27,074 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | +3.4 | |
1923 Rutland and Stamford by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Neville Smith-Carington | 11,196 | 57.1 | +10.3 |
| | Labour | Arthur Sells | 8,406 | 42.9 | +10.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,790 | 14.2 | +0.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 19,602 | 71.5 | −9.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 27,409 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | +0.2 | |
General election 1923: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Neville Smith-Carington | 10,803 | 51.4 | +4.6 |
| | Liberal | Frank Stapledon Hiley | 5,203 | 24.8 | New |
| | Labour | Arthur Sells | 5,005 | 23.8 | −9.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,600 | 26.6 | +12.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 21,011 | 76.7 | −4.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 27,409 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | +6.9 | |
General election 1924: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Neville Smith-Carington | 13,286 | 66.7 | +15.3 |
| | Labour | H F Wheeler | 6,633 | 33.3 | +9.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,653 | 33.4 | +6.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 19,919 | 71.5 | −5.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 27,869 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | +2.9 | |
General election 1929: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Neville Smith-Carington | 12,607 | 47.4 | −19.3 |
| | Labour | Henry James Jones | 7,403 | 27.9 | −5.4 |
| | Liberal | Harry Payne | 6,561 | 24.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,204 | 19.5 | −13.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 26,571 | 76.7 | +5.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 34,647 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −7.0 | |

### Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Neville Smith-Carington | 19,086 | 71.9 | +24.5 |
| | Labour | F E Church | 7,446 | 28.1 | +0.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,640 | 43.8 | +24.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 26,532 | 75.3 | −1.4 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
1933 Rutland and Stamford by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | James Heathcote-Drummond-Willoughby | 14,605 | 53.3 | −18.6 |
| | Labour | Arnold William Gray | 12,818 | 46.7 | +18.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,787 | 6.6 | −37.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 27,423 | 77.2 | +1.9 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1935: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | James Heathcote-Drummond-Willoughby | 16,799 | 59.9 | −12.0 |
| | Labour | Arnold William Gray | 11,238 | 40.1 | +12.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,561 | 19.8 | −24.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 28,037 | 78.4 | +3.1 |
| | 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 and by the Autumn of 1939, the following candidates had been selected;
* Conservative: James Heathcote-Drummond-Willoughby
* Labour: Arnold William Gray

### Elections in the 1940s

General election 1945: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | James Heathcote-Drummond-Willoughby | 15,359 | 53.7 | −6.2 |
| | Labour | Arnold William Gray | 13,223 | 46.3 | +6.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,136 | 7.4 | −12.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 28,582 | 72.9 | −5.5 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roger Conant | 16,498 | 49.6 | −4.1 |
| | Labour | Tom Bradley | 13,712 | 41.3 | −5.0 |
| | Liberal | Cyril Valentine | 3,024 | 9.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,786 | 8.3 | +0.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,234 | 83.8 | +10.9 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1951: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roger Conant | 17,850 | 54.1 | +4.5 |
| | Labour | Tom Bradley | 15,127 | 45.9 | +4.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,723 | 8.2 | −0.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,977 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1955: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roger Conant | 17,675 | 54.3 | +0.2 |
| | Labour | Tom Bradley | 14,856 | 45.7 | −0.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,819 | 3.6 | −4.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,531 | 79.7 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1959: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Kenneth Lewis | 19,078 | 57.4 | +3.1 |
| | Labour | Christopher S B Attlee | 14,137 | 42.6 | −3.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,941 | 14.8 | +11.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,215 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Kenneth Lewis | 18,720 | 55.5 | −1.9 |
| | Labour Co-op | A Victor Butler | 14,990 | 44.5 | +1.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,730 | 11.0 | −3.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,710 | 79.3 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1966: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Kenneth Lewis | 17,991 | 53.4 | −2.1 |
| | Labour Co-op | A Victor Butler | 15,704 | 46.6 | +2.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,287 | 6.8 | −4.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,695 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Kenneth Lewis | 22,803 | 60.1 | +6.7 |
| | Labour | Henry Toch | 15,136 | 39.9 | −6.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,667 | 20.2 | +13.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 37,939 | 75.0 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election February 1974: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Kenneth Lewis | 21,088 | 47.25 | |
| | Labour | Anthony Byrne | 12,203 | 27.34 | |
| | Liberal | David Howie | 11,336 | 25.40 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,885 | 19.91 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,627 | 82.40 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election October 1974: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Kenneth Lewis | 19,101 | 46.2 | −1.0 |
| | Labour | Malcolm R.C. Withers | 12,111 | 29.3 | +2.0 |
| | Liberal | David Howie | 10,113 | 24.5 | −0.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,990 | 16.9 | −3.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,325 | 72.0 | −10.4 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1979: Rutland and Stamford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Kenneth Lewis | 26,198 | 56.48 | +10.28 |
| | Labour | Malcolm R.C. Withers | 11,383 | 24.54 | −4.76 |
| | Liberal | Peter Blaine | 8,801 | 18.98 | −5.52 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 14,815 | 31.94 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,382 | 78.08 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |