# Normanton (UK Parliament constituency)

53°42′00″N 1°24′54″W﻿ / ﻿53.700°N 1.415°W﻿ / 53.700; -1.415
Normanton was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

## Boundaries

1885–1918:
1918–1950: The Urban Districts of Altofts, Castleford, Featherstone, Methley, Normanton, and Whitwood.
1950–1983: The Urban Districts of Normanton, Rothwell, and Stanley, in the Rural District of Tadcaster the parishes of Great and Little Preston, and Swillington, and in the Rural District of Wakefield the parishes of Crofton, Sharlston, and Warmfield-cum-Heath.
1983–1997: The City of Wakefield wards of Normanton and Sharlston, Ossett, Stanley and Altofts, and Stanley and Wrenthorpe, and the City of Leeds ward of Rothwell.
1997–2010: The City of Wakefield wards of Horbury, Normanton and Sharlston, Ossett, Stanley and Altofts, and Stanley and Wrenthorpe.
The West Yorkshire constituency included the towns of Normanton and Ossett and several villages. The area had a tradition of being working-class, but it had now become almost entirely gentrified as nearby Leeds has expanded as a financial centre.
Ossett was now actually the largest town in the area, due to its high growth in recent years.
The constituency was nicknamed the banana constituency on account of its unusual shape.
The village of Altofts, located just to the north of Normanton, was included in the constituency, despite being part of a Castleford ward, and due to move into a proposed "Pontefract and Castleford" seat which happened in 2010.

### Boundary review

Following their review of parliamentary representation in West Yorkshire, the Boundary Commission for England had created a Normanton and Pontefract constituency. In late May 2006, the Commission published a revised recommendation changing the name of this constituency to Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford.
Local newspapers and the Labour Party opposed the initial change, but following a public consultation the Commission decided to create the seat conceding only a name change – from Pontefract and Castleford, to Normanton and Pontefract. This was extended to cover all three names. The wards of Wrenthorpe and Outwood West and Stanley and Outwood East – the most affluent parts of the constituency – were joined to the Conservative-leaning commuter town of Morley, which is in the Leeds district, as Morley and Outwood. Ossett and Horbury were moved to the Wakefield constituency. At the time local groups and newspapers protested that this represented a takeover of the Wakefield district by the Leeds district. An early concern of the Labour Party was that Morley and Outwood would be won by the Conservatives in 2010. Ed Balls held the seat for Labour by just 1,101 votes, and ultimately lost the seat at the 2015 general election to the Conservatives' Andrea Jenkyns.

## Members of Parliament

The constituency elected only Labour MPs since 1905, the longest run (with Gower and Makerfield) of any UK constituency. From 1885 to 1906, it had returned Liberal-Labour MPs.
Ed Balls, the former Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, represented the seat from the 2005 general election until 2010 when it was abolished.
| Election | Member | Party |
| 1885 | Benjamin Pickard | Lib-Lab |
| 1904 by-election | William Parrott | Lib-Lab |
| 1905 by-election | Frederick Hall | Lib-Lab |
| 1909 | Frederick Hall | Labour |
| 1933 by-election | Tom Smith | Labour |
| 1947 by-election | George Sylvester | Labour |
| 1950 | Thomas Brooks | Labour |
| 1951 | Albert Roberts | Labour |
| 1983 | Bill O'Brien | Labour |
| 2005 | Ed Balls | Labour Co-op |
| 2010 | constituency abolished : see Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford and Morley and Outwood | constituency abolished : see Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford and Morley and Outwood |

## Election results
### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1885: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | Benjamin Pickard | 5,615 | 60.2 | |
| | Conservative | Albany Charlesworth | 3,706 | 39.8 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,909 | 20.4 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,321 | 81.2 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,479 | | |
| | Lib-Lab win (new seat) | Lib-Lab win (new seat) | Lib-Lab win (new seat) | Lib-Lab win (new seat) | Lib-Lab win (new seat) |
General election 1886: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | Benjamin Pickard | 4,771 | 56.2 | −4.0 |
| | Conservative | Albany Charlesworth | 3,724 | 43.8 | +4.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,047 | 12.4 | −8.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,495 | 74.0 | −7.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,479 | | |
| | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Swing | -4.0 | |

### Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | Benjamin Pickard | 6,134 | 61.7 | +5.5 |
| | Conservative | Percy Tew | 3,803 | 38.3 | −5.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,331 | 23.4 | +11.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,937 | 76.4 | +2.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 13,000 | | |
| | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Swing | +5.5 | |
General election 1895: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | Benjamin Pickard | 5,499 | 58.3 | −3.4 |
| | Conservative | D'Arcy Bruce Wilson | 3,941 | 41.7 | +3.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,558 | 16.6 | −6.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,440 | 72.6 | −3.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 12,998 | | |
| | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Swing | -3.4 | |

### Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | Benjamin Pickard | 5,025 | 58.2 | −0.1 |
| | Conservative | Cecil Edmund Lister-Kaye, 4th Baronet | 3,606 | 41.8 | +0.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,419 | 16.4 | −0.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,631 | 65.9 | −6.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 13,100 | | |
| | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Swing | -0.1 | |
1904 Normanton by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | William Parrott | 6,855 | 70.2 | +12.0 |
| | Conservative | Marcus Robert Phipps Dorman | 2,909 | 29.8 | −12.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,946 | 40.4 | +24.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,764 | 65.5 | −0.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 14,898 | | |
| | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Swing | +12.0 | |
1905 Normanton by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | Frederick Hall | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold |
General election 1906: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | Frederick Hall | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold |

### Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Frederick Hall | 9,172 | 72.2 | N/A |
| | Conservative | Ellis Ashmead-Bartlett | 3,540 | 27.8 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,632 | 44.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 12,712 | 77.2 | N/A |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election December 1910: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Frederick Hall | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold |
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;
* Lib-Lab: Frederick Hall
* Unionist:
General election 1918: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Frederick Hall | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold |

### Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Frederick Hall | 16,040 | 73.3 | N/A |
| | National Liberal | Ernest George Bearcroft | 5,855 | 26.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,185 | 46.6 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 21,895 | 68.3 | N/A |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1923: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Frederick Hall | 15,455 | 78.0 | +4.7 |
| | Unionist | George Hillman | 4,365 | 22.0 | −4.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,090 | 56.0 | +9.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 19,820 | 61.5 | −6.8 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +4.7 | |
General election 1924: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Frederick Hall | Unopposed | N/A | N/A |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold |
General election 1929: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Frederick Hall | 26,008 | 83.1 | N/A |
| | Unionist | Alfred Coates | 5,276 | 16.9 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 20,732 | 66.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 31,284 | 75.8 | N/A |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Frederick Hall | 22,877 | 69.6 | −13.5 |
| | Conservative | John Norman Cumberbirch | 9,974 | 30.4 | +13.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,903 | 39.2 | −27.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,851 | 78.8 | +3.0 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -13.5 | |
1933 Normanton by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Tom Smith | Unopposed | N/A | N/A |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold |
General election 1935: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Tom Smith | 26,705 | 81.4 | +11.8 |
| | Conservative | Eric Oscar Moss | 6,106 | 18.6 | −11.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 20,599 | 62.8 | +23.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,811 | 77.7 | −1.1 |
| | Labour hold | Labour 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;
* Labour: Tom Smith
* Conservative: T.T. Heywood

### Elections in the 1940s

General election 1945: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Tom Smith | 28,238 | 84.3 | +2.9 |
| | Conservative | John Harvey Hulbert | 5,259 | 15.7 | −2.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 22,979 | 68.6 | +5.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,497 | 79.9 | +2.2 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +2.9 | |
1947 Normanton by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | George Sylvester | 19,085 | 79.8 | −4.5 |
| | Conservative | Enoch Powell | 4,258 | 17.8 | +2.1 |
| | Independent | Walter Dixon Hartley | 579 | 2.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 14,827 | 62.0 | −6.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 23,922 | 54.6 | −25.3 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -3.3 | |

### Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Thomas Brooks | 31,986 | 74.53 |
| | Conservative | Thomas Heseltine | 10,929 | 25.47 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 21,057 | 49.06 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 42,915 | 87.54 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1951: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Albert Roberts | 31,052 | 73.49 |
| | National Liberal | Thomas Heseltine | 11,199 | 26.51 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 19,853 | 46.98 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 42,251 | 85.48 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1955: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Albert Roberts | 27,846 | 73.50 |
| | Conservative | John Bird | 10,040 | 26.50 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 17,806 | 47.00 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 37,886 | 78.09 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1959: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Albert Roberts | 29,672 | 72.65 |
| | Conservative | James A C Briggs | 11,169 | 27.35 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 18,503 | 45.30 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,841 | 83.11 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Albert Roberts | 28,477 | 72.53 |
| | Conservative | Francis Kevin Roberts | 10,785 | 27.47 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 17,692 | 45.06 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,262 | 77.51 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1966: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Albert Roberts | 29,416 | 76.41 |
| | Conservative | John Edward Robert Wauchop | 9,084 | 23.59 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 20,332 | 52.82 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,500 | 74.31 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Albert Roberts | 28,421 | 68.40 |
| | Conservative | David H Cargill | 13,132 | 31.60 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 15,289 | 36.80 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,553 | 71.55 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election February 1974: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Albert Roberts | 29,621 | 67.22 |
| | Conservative | Antony Marlow | 14,447 | 32.78 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 15,174 | 34.44 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,068 | 75.40 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election October 1974: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Albert Roberts | 24,372 | 58.73 | |
| | Conservative | J Makin | 9,739 | 23.47 | |
| | Liberal | Wilfred Whitaker | 7,384 | 17.79 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 14,633 | 35.26 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,495 | 70.41 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 1979: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Albert Roberts | 26,591 | 56.43 |
| | Conservative | MH Cavendish | 14,398 | 30.55 |
| | Liberal | ARC Paton | 6,134 | 13.02 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,193 | 25.88 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,123 | 76.76 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1983: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Bill O'Brien | 18,782 | 43.56 |
| | Conservative | Alan Paul | 14,599 | 33.86 |
| | SDP | P Pantelli | 9,741 | 22.59 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,183 | 9.70 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,122 | 70.40 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1987: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Bill O'Brien | 23,303 | 49.54 |
| | Conservative | Michael Smith | 16,016 | 34.05 |
| | SDP | Richard Macey | 7,717 | 16.41 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,287 | 15.49 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,036 | 74.78 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Bill O'Brien | 25,936 | 51.8 | +2.3 |
| | Conservative | Robert Sturdy | 16,986 | 33.9 | −0.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | M Galdas | 7,137 | 14.3 | −2.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,950 | 17.9 | +2.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 50,059 | 76.3 | +1.5 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +1.2 | |
General election 1997: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Bill O'Brien | 26,046 | 60.57 | |
| | Conservative | Fiona Bulmer | 10,153 | 23.61 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | David Ridgway | 5,347 | 12.43 | |
| | Referendum | Ken Shuttleworth | 1,458 | 3.39 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 15,893 | 36.96 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,004 | 68.28 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 2000s

General election 2001: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Bill O'Brien | 19,152 | 56.1 | −4.5 |
| | Conservative | Graham Smith | 9,215 | 27.0 | +3.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Stephen Pearson | 4,990 | 14.6 | +2.2 |
| | Socialist Labour | Mick Appleyard | 798 | 2.3 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,937 | 29.1 | −7.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 34,155 | 52.2 | −16.1 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 2005: Normanton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour Co-op | Ed Balls | 19,161 | 51.2 | −4.9 |
| | Conservative | Andrew Percy | 9,159 | 24.5 | −2.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Simone Butterworth | 6,357 | 17.0 | +2.4 |
| | BNP | John Aveyard | 1,967 | 5.3 | New |
| | Independent | Mark Harrop | 780 | 2.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,002 | 26.7 | −2.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 37,424 | 57.5 | +5.3 |
| | Labour Co-op hold | Labour Co-op hold | Swing | | |