# Faversham (UK Parliament constituency)

Faversham was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Faversham in Kent which returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
It was created for the 1885 general election, and abolished for the 1997 general election when it was replaced by the new constituencies of Sittingbourne and Sheppey, and Faversham and Mid Kent.

## Boundaries

1885–1918:
* The Borough of Faversham
* the Sessional Division of Faversham
* the corporate town of Queenborough
1918–1950:
* the Boroughs of Faversham and Queenborough,
* the Urban Districts of Milton Regis,
* Sheerness, and Sittingbourne,
* the Rural Districts of Milton and Sheppey,
* the Rural District of Faversham (except the detached parts of the parishes of Dunkirk and Hernhill which were wholly surrounded by the Rural District of Blean)
1950–1983:
* the Boroughs of Faversham and Queenborough
* the Urban Districts of Sheerness, Sittingbourne and Milton
* the Rural Districts of Sheppey and Swale
1983–1997:
* the Borough of Swale wards of Abbey, Borden, Davington Priory, East Downs, Eastern, Grove, Iwade and Lower Halstow
* Kemsley
* Milton Regis
* Minster Cliffs
* Murston
* Newington
* Queenborough and Halfway
* Roman
* St Ann's
* Sheerness East
* Sheerness West
* Sheppey Central
* Teynham and Lynsted
* Watling
* West Downs
* Woodstock

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Member | Party |
| 1885 | Herbert Knatchbull-Hugessen | Conservative |
| 1895 | Frederic Barnes | Conservative |
| 1900 | John Howard | Conservative |
| 1906 | Thomas Napier | Liberal |
| Jan 1910 | Sir Granville Wheler, Bt. | Conservative |
| 1928 by-election | Sir Adam Maitland | Conservative |
| 1945 | Percy Wells | Labour |
| 1964 by-election | Terry Boston | Labour |
| 1970 | Sir Roger Moate | Conservative |
| 1997 | constituency abolished | constituency abolished |

## Elections
### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1885: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Herbert Knatchbull-Hugessen | 5,067 | 55.1 | |
| | Liberal | Francis Flint Belsey | 4,123 | 44.9 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 944 | 10.2 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,190 | 80.8 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,370 | | |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |
General election 1886: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Herbert Knatchbull-Hugessen | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold |

### Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Herbert Knatchbull-Hugessen | 4,846 | 51.1 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Sydney Hallifax | 4,640 | 48.9 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 206 | 2.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,486 | 66.7 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 14,219 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1895: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Frederic Gorell Barnes | 5,738 | 55.7 | +4.6 |
| | Liberal | Samuel Barrow | 4,557 | 44.3 | −4.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,181 | 11.4 | +9.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,295 | 75.1 | +8.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 13,701 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +4.6 | |

### Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Howard | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold |
General election 1906: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Thomas Napier | 6,925 | 57.6 | New |
| | Conservative | John Howard | 5,091 | 42.4 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,834 | 15.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 12,016 | 80.9 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 14,860 | | |
| | Liberal gain from Conservative | Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Granville Wheler | 7,438 | 58.0 | +15.6 |
| | Liberal | Thomas Napier | 5,394 | 42.0 | −15.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,044 | 16.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 12,832 | 87.6 | +6.7 |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal | Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | +15.6 | |
General election December 1910: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Granville Wheler | 6,897 | 57.4 | −0.6 |
| | Lib-Lab | George Nicholls | 5,111 | 42.6 | +0.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,786 | 14.8 | −1.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 12,008 | 82.0 | −5.6 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -0.6 | |
General Election 1914–15:
Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;
* Unionist: Granville Wheler
* Liberal:
* Labour: Stanley Morgan
General election 1918: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| C | Unionist | Granville Wheler | 12,826 | 68.2 | +10.8 |
| | Labour | Stanley Morgan | 5,981 | 31.8 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,845 | 36.4 | +21.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 18,807 | 50.2 | −31.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 37,478 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | | |
| C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. ||||||

### Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Granville Wheler | 13,675 | 55.2 | −13.0 |
| | Labour | Stanley Morgan | 11,096 | 44.8 | +13.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,579 | 10.4 | −26.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 24,771 | 61.7 | +11.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 40,156 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −13.0 | |
General election 1923: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Granville Wheler | 13,422 | 52.1 | −3.1 |
| | Labour | Stanley Morgan | 12,361 | 47.9 | +3.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,061 | 4.2 | −6.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 25,783 | 63.4 | +1.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 40,676 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −3.1 | |
General election 1924: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Granville Wheler | 14,432 | 46.9 | −5.2 |
| | Labour | Stanley Morgan | 9,180 | 29.9 | −18.0 |
| | Liberal | Albert J Soloman | 7,132 | 23.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,252 | 17.0 | +12.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 30,744 | 73.9 | +10.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 41,589 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | +6.4 | |
1928 Faversham by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Adam Maitland | 12,997 | 41.7 | −5.2 |
| | Labour | Dudley Aman | 11,313 | 36.2 | +6.3 |
| | Liberal | John Dunn | 5,813 | 18.6 | −4.6 |
| | Ind. Unionist | E.A. Hailwood | 1,090 | 3.5 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,684 | 5.5 | −11.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 31,213 | 72.4 | −1.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 43,122 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −5.8 | |
General election 1929: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Adam Maitland | 16,219 | 41.3 | −5.6 |
| | Labour | Dudley Aman | 15,275 | 38.9 | +9.0 |
| | Liberal | Maurice Gerothwohl | 7,782 | 19.8 | −3.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 944 | 2.4 | −14.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,276 | 75.5 | +1.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 52,047 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −7.3 | |

### Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Adam Maitland | 25,568 | 65.9 | +24.6 |
| | Labour | Norman Smith | 13,226 | 34.1 | −4.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,342 | 31.8 | +29.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,794 | 72.2 | −3.3 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1935: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Adam Maitland | 22,881 | 54.6 | −11.3 |
| | Labour | Norman Smith | 19,060 | 45.4 | +11.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,821 | 9.2 | −22.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,941 | 74.0 | +1.8 |
| | 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: Adam Maitland
* Labour: John Belcher

### Elections in the 1940s

General election 1945: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Percy Wells | 23,502 | 52.8 | +7.4 |
| | Conservative | Adam Maitland | 21,037 | 47.2 | −7.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,465 | 5.6 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,539 | 73.1 | −0.9 |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Percy Wells | 23,620 | 48.71 | |
| | Conservative | J. E. Brooks | 21,381 | 44.10 | |
| | Liberal | Elizabeth May Graham | 3,486 | 7.19 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,239 | 4.61 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,487 | 86.33 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 1951: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Percy Wells | 24,884 | 50.57 |
| | Conservative | Clive Bossom | 24,322 | 49.43 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 562 | 1.14 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 49,206 | 86.04 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1955: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Percy Wells | 23,981 | 50.06 |
| | Conservative | Clive Bossom | 23,922 | 49.94 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 59 | 0.12 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,903 | 78.36 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1959: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Percy Wells | 24,327 | 50.26 |
| | Conservative | Elsie M. S. Olsen | 24,074 | 49.74 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 253 | 0.52 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,401 | 83.80 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1960s

1964 Faversham by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Terence Boston | 24,749 | 55.1 | +4.8 |
| | Conservative | Elsie M. S. Olsen | 19,808 | 44.1 | −3.6 |
| | Independent | Russell Eckley | 352 | 0.8 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,941 | 11.0 | +10.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,909 | 74.8 | −9.0 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +10.5 | |
General election 1964: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Terence Boston | 24,243 | 49.1 | −1.2 |
| | Conservative | Elsie M. S. Olsen | 20,279 | 41.0 | −8.7 |
| | Liberal | Paul Hayden | 4,882 | 9.9 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,964 | 8.1 | +7.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 49,404 | 81.7 | −2.1 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 1966: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Terence Boston | 26,375 | 52.5 | +3.4 |
| | Conservative | Roger Moate | 23,886 | 47.5 | +6.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,489 | 5.0 | −3.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 50,261 | 79.9 | −1.8 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +1.5 | |

### Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roger Moate | 29,914 | 53.4 | +5.9 |
| | Labour | Terence Boston | 26,103 | 46.6 | −5.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,811 | 6.8 | +1.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,013 | 78.1 | −1.8 |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
General election February 1974: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roger Moate | 26,316 | 42.2 | −11.2 |
| | Labour | Mike Freedman | 20,909 | 33.6 | −13.0 |
| | Liberal | PJ Morgan | 14,927 | 24.0 | New |
| | Community | E Dignan | 151 | 0.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,407 | 8.6 | +1.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 62,301 | 82.6 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election October 1974: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roger Moate | 25,087 | 43.0 | +0.8 |
| | Labour | Mike Freedman | 22,210 | 38.1 | +4.5 |
| | Liberal | PJ Morgan | 10,979 | 18.8 | −5.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,877 | 4.9 | −3.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 58,276 | 76.7 | −5.9 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1979: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roger Moate | 33,513 | 54.4 | +11.4 |
| | Labour | T Sherwen | 21,351 | 34.6 | −3.5 |
| | Liberal | AC Aldous | 6,349 | 10.3 | −8.5 |
| | National Front | A Webb | 439 | 0.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,162 | 19.8 | +14.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 61,653 | 78.5 | +1.8 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1983: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roger Moate | 29,849 | 53.1 | −1.3 |
| | SDP | Edward Goyder | 15,252 | 27.1 | +16.8 |
| | Labour | Christopher Bromley | 11,130 | 19.8 | −14.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 14,597 | 26.0 | +6.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,233 | 73.5 | −5.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1987: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roger Moate | 31,074 | 51.1 | −2.0 |
| | SDP | Edward Goyder | 17,096 | 28.1 | +1.0 |
| | Labour | Philip Dangerfield | 12,616 | 20.8 | +1.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,978 | 23.0 | −3.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 60,788 | 76.9 | +3.4 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Faversham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Roger Moate | 32,755 | 50.1 | −1.0 |
| | Labour | Helen Brinton | 16,404 | 25.1 | +4.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Roger Truelove | 15,896 | 24.3 | −3.8 |
| | Natural Law | Robin M. Bradshaw | 294 | 0.5 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 16,351 | 25.0 | +2.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 65,352 | 79.7 | +2.8 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |