# Leyton and Wanstead (UK Parliament constituency)

Leyton and Wanstead is a constituency in Greater London created in 1997 and represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Calvin Bailey of the Labour Party.

## History

The seat arose from the enacting of the recommendations of the fourth periodic review of Westminster constituencies of the Boundary Commission for England to take account of demographic population change and seek to equalise electorates whilst in preference retaining the historic connections with the local authorities of the United Kingdom.

### Political history

The constituency has consistently elected Labour Party MPs (Members of Parliament); the narrowest winning majority was 16%; the greatest, 49%, in 2017. Harry Cohen was MP for the Leyton area from 1983 and this seat from 1997. Cohen retired before the 2010 election, after which the seat was retained by John Cryer. At the time of the 2015 result, the seat was the 46th safest of Labour's 232 seats by percentage of majority.

## Constituency profile

This seat combines deprived and economic-cycle vulnerable areas around Leyton with the more affluent, resilient Wanstead area. It is an ethnically diverse area, with the biggest minority groups being Pakistani British and Caribbean British, although it has fewer ethnic minority constituents than in the London Borough of Newham.

## Boundaries

Uniting for general elections areas from the boroughs of Redbridge and Waltham Forest in inner north-east London, the constituency covers Leyton, Wanstead & Leytonstone. The seat was created for the 1997 election succeeding the Leyton constituency, with parts of what had been the formerly safe Conservative Wanstead and Woodford constituency.
1997–2024: The London Borough of Redbridge wards of Snaresbrook and Wanstead; and the London Borough of Waltham Forest wards of Cann Hall, Cathall, Forest, Grove Green, Leyton, and Leytonstone.
2024–present: The London Borough of Redbridge wards of South Woodford, Wanstead Park, and Wanstead Village; and the London Borough of Waltham Forest wards of Cann Hall, Cathall, Forest, Grove Green, Hoe Street (part), Leyton (part), and Leytonstone.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Member | Party |
| 1997 | Harry Cohen | Labour |
| 2010 | John Cryer | Labour |
| 2024 | Calvin Bailey | Labour |

## Elections
### Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Leyton and Wanstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Calvin Bailey | 20,755 | 47.5 | −15.6 |
| | Green | Charlotte Lafferty | 6,791 | 15.5 | +11.7 |
| | Conservative | Gloria Croxall | 4,846 | 11.1 | −8.8 |
| | Independent | Shanell Johnson | 4,173 | 9.5 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Tara Copeland | 2,815 | 6.4 | −4.3 |
| | Reform UK | David Sandground | 2,475 | 5.7 | +4.0 |
| | Workers Party | Mahtab Anwar Aziz | 1,633 | 3.7 | N/A |
| | Rejoin EU | Simon Bezer | 244 | 0.6 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,964 | 32.0 | −16.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,732 | 59.6 | –8.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 73,366 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −13.7 | |

### Elections in the 2010s

2019 notional result :
| Party | Party | Vote | % |
| | Labour | 30,823 | 63.1 |
| | Conservative | 9,702 | 19.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | 5,209 | 10.7 |
| | Green | 1,868 | 3.8 |
| | Brexit Party | 836 | 1.7 |
| | Others | 427 | 0.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | 48,865 | 68.5 |
| Electorate | Electorate | 71,330 |
General election 2019: Leyton and Wanstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Cryer | 28,836 | 64.7 | –5.1 |
| | Conservative | Noshaba Khiljee | 8,028 | 18.0 | –2.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ben Sims | 4,666 | 10.5 | +4.1 |
| | Green | Ashley Gunstock | 1,805 | 4.1 | +1.2 |
| | Brexit Party | Zulf Jannaty | 785 | 1.7 | N/A |
| | Independent | Henry Scott | 427 | 1.0 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 20,808 | 46.7 | –2.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,547 | 68.7 | –2.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 64,852 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | –1.2 | |
General election 2017: Leyton and Wanstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Cryer | 32,234 | 69.8 | +11.2 |
| | Conservative | Laura Farris | 9,627 | 20.8 | –1.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ben Sims | 2,961 | 6.4 | +0.7 |
| | Green | Ashley Gunstock | 1,351 | 2.9 | –4.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 22,607 | 49.0 | +12.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,173 | 70.9 | +7.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 65,149 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +6.2 | |
General election 2015: Leyton and Wanstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Cryer | 23,858 | 58.6 | +15.0 |
| | Conservative | Matthew Scott | 8,939 | 22.0 | –0.2 |
| | Green | Ashley Gunstock | 2,974 | 7.3 | +5.9 |
| | UKIP | Rosamund Beattie | 2,341 | 5.8 | +3.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Carl Quilliam | 2,304 | 5.7 | –21.9 |
| | Independent | Mahtab Aziz | 289 | 0.7 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 14,919 | 36.6 | +20.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,705 | 63.0 | –0.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 64,580 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +7.6 | |
General election 2010: Leyton and Wanstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Cryer | 17,511 | 43.6 | −2.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Farooq Qureshi | 11,095 | 27.6 | +2.9 |
| | Conservative | Ed Northover | 8,928 | 22.2 | −0.5 |
| | UKIP | Graham Wood | 1,080 | 2.7 | +0.9 |
| | Green | Ashley Gunstock | 562 | 1.4 | −3.0 |
| | BNP | Jim Clift | 561 | 1.4 | N/A |
| | Christian | Sonika Bhatti | 342 | 0.9 | N/A |
| | Independents Federation UK | Martin Levin | 80 | 0.2 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,416 | 16.0 | −4.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,159 | 63.2 | +9.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 63,541 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -2.6 | |

### Elections in the 2000s

General election 2005: Leyton and Wanstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Harry Cohen | 15,234 | 45.8 | −12.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Meher Khan | 8,377 | 25.2 | +9.2 |
| | Conservative | Julien Foster | 7,393 | 22.2 | +2.5 |
| | Green | Ashley Gunstock | 1,522 | 4.6 | +1.5 |
| | UKIP | Nick Jones | 591 | 1.8 | +0.7 |
| | Independent | Marc Robertson | 155 | 0.5 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,857 | 20.6 | −17.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,272 | 55.0 | +0.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 60,444 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −10.7 | |
General election 2001: Leyton and Wanstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Harry Cohen | 19,558 | 58.0 | −2.8 |
| | Conservative | Edward G. Heckels | 6,654 | 19.7 | −2.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Alexander I.M.C. Wilcock | 5,389 | 16.0 | +0.9 |
| | Green | Ashley Gunstock | 1,030 | 3.1 | N/A |
| | Socialist Alliance | Sally A. Labern | 709 | 2.1 | N/A |
| | UKIP | Michael J. D'Ingurthorpe | 378 | 1.1 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,904 | 38.3 | −0.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,718 | 54.8 | −8.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 61,549 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -0.2 | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1997: Leyton and Wanstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Harry Cohen | 23,922 | 60.8 | |
| | Conservative | Robert Vaudry | 8,736 | 22.2 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Charles Anglin | 5,920 | 15.1 | |
| | ProLife Alliance | Sean Duffy | 488 | 1.2 | |
| | Independent | Abdul Mian | 256 | 0.7 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 15,186 | 38.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,322 | 63.2 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 62,176 | | |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |