# Cleveland (UK Parliament constituency)

Cleveland was a county constituency in the Langbaurgh Wapentake (also known as Cleveland), North Riding of Yorkshire, England.

## Electorate

It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the British House of Commons, using the first past the post voting system. All elections were conducted with a secret ballot, which had been introduced under the Ballot Act 1872.
The franchise was initially restricted, and extended on several occasions:
* The Representation of the People Act 1884 gave a vote to adult males who met a property qualification; women, and about 40% of men, had no vote
* The Representation of the People Act 1918 extended the vote to all adult males and to women over the age of 30 who met certain property qualifications
* The Representation of the People Act 1928 allowed women to vote from age 21, on the same terms as men
* The Representation of the People Act 1948 abolished the plural votes previously granted to electors who met a property qualification because of their business or shop premises
* The Representation of the People Act 1969 lowered the voting age to 18

## History

The Cleveland constituency was created when the North Riding of Yorkshire constituency was divided by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, and Cleveland then covered the northern tip of the North Riding.
In 1918 it was redefined in terms of local government areas, and covered part of Guisborough Rural District and the Middlesbrough Rural District, along with the urban districts of Eston, Guisborough, Hinderwell, Loftus, Redcar, Saltburn by the Sea and Skelton and Brotton. In 1948 it was redefined again to cover Eston, Guisborough, Loftus, Redcar, Saltburn and Marske by the Sea and Skelton and Brotton; the new boundaries were first used for the 1950 general election. As such it was a socially mixed constituency throughout its existence, containing working class Middlesbrough suburbs and ironstone mining villages as well as middle class resorts and agricultural communities.
It returned its last Member of Parliament in 1970, by which time Cleveland district of Yorkshire's North Riding had been abolished in 1967, to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until it was abolished leading up to the February 1974 general election.
It was replaced by the Redcar constituency and Cleveland & Whitby constituency.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Election | Member | Party |
| 1885 | 1885 | constituency created | constituency created |
| | 1885 | Henry Fell Pease | Liberal |
| | 1897 by-election | Alfred Pease | Liberal |
| | 1902 by-election | Herbert Samuel | Liberal |
| | 1918 | Sir Park Goff | Coalition Conservative |
| | 1923 | Sir Charles Starmer | Liberal |
| | 1924 | Sir Park Goff | Unionist |
| | 1929 | William Mansfield | Labour |
| | 1931 | Robert Tatton Bower | Conservative |
| | 1945 | George Willey | Labour |
| | 1952 by-election | Arthur Palmer | Labour |
| | 1959 | Wilfred Proudfoot | Conservative |
| | 1964 | James Tinn | Labour |
| Feb 1974 | Feb 1974 | constituency abolished: see Cleveland & Whitby | constituency abolished: see Cleveland & Whitby |

## Elections
### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1885: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Henry Fell Pease | 6,948 | 70.9 | |
| | Conservative | Guy Dawnay | 2,845 | 29.1 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,103 | 41.8 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,793 | 83.1 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,788 | | |
| | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) |
General election 1886: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Henry Fell Pease | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |

### Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Henry Fell Pease | 4,397 | 52.1 | N/A |
| | Conservative | Arthur Dorman | 4,049 | 47.9 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 348 | 4.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,446 | 76.3 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,076 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1895: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Henry Fell Pease | 4,762 | 53.3 | +1.2 |
| | Conservative | Robert Ropner | 4,175 | 46.7 | −1.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 587 | 6.6 | +2.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,937 | 81.3 | +5.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,989 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | +1.2 | |
Pease's death causes a by-election.
1897 Cleveland by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Alfred Pease | 5,508 | 57.4 | +4.1 |
| | Conservative | Robert Ropner | 4,080 | 42.6 | −4.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,428 | 14.8 | +8.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,588 | 83.7 | +2.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,454 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | +4.1 | |

### Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Alfred Pease | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |
1902 Cleveland by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Herbert Samuel | 5,834 | 60.6 | N/A |
| | Conservative | Geoffrey Drage | 3,798 | 39.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,036 | 21.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,632 | 77.9 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 12,360 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1906: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Herbert Samuel | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |
1909 Cleveland by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Herbert Samuel | 6,296 | 54.2 | N/A |
| | Conservative | James Windsor Lewis | 5,325 | 45.8 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 971 | 8.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 11,621 | 83.5 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 13,922 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Herbert Samuel | 7,484 | 57.7 | N/A |
| | Conservative | James Windsor Lewis | 5,491 | 42.3 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,993 | 15.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 12,975 | 87.6 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 14,811 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election December 1910: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Herbert Samuel | 6,870 | 56.3 | −1.4 |
| | Conservative | James Windsor Lewis | 5,343 | 43.7 | +1.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,527 | 12.6 | −2.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 12,213 | 82.5 | −5.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 14,811 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | -1.4 | |
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;
* Liberal: Herbert Samuel
* Unionist: Park Goff
* Labour: Harry Dack
1915 Cleveland by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Herbert Samuel | 7,312 | 83.4 | +27.1 |
| | John Bull League | R Knight | 1,453 | 16.6 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,859 | 66.8 | +54.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,765 | 53.4 | −29.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 16,424 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1918: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| C | Unionist | Park Goff | 8,701 | 35.6 | −8.1 |
| | Labour | Harry Dack | 8,610 | 35.3 | New |
| | Liberal | Herbert Samuel | 7,089 | 29.1 | −27.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 91 | 0.3 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 24,400 | 66.2 | −16.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 36,843 | | |
| | Unionist gain from Liberal | Unionist gain from Liberal | Swing | +4.1 | |
| C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. ||||||

### Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Park Goff | 13,369 | 37.7 | +2.1 |
| | Liberal | Charles Starmer | 11,668 | 32.8 | +3.7 |
| | Labour | Harry Dack | 10,843 | 29.5 | −5.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,701 | 4.9 | +4.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 35,520 | 82.4 | +16.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 43,105 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −0.8 | |
General election 1923: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Charles Starmer | 13,326 | 38.2 | +5.4 |
| | Unionist | Park Goff | 11,855 | 34.0 | −3.7 |
| | Labour | Robert Dennison | 9,683 | 27.8 | −1.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,471 | 4.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 34,864 | 80.4 | −2.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 43,339 | | |
| | Liberal gain from Unionist | Liberal gain from Unionist | Swing | +4.6 | |
General election 1924: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Park Goff | 16,578 | 43.6 | +9.6 |
| | Labour | William Mansfield | 11,153 | 29.4 | +1.6 |
| | Liberal | Charles Starmer | 10,260 | 27.0 | −11.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,425 | 14.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 37,991 | 86.3 | +5.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 44,040 | | |
| | Unionist gain from Liberal | Unionist gain from Liberal | Swing | +10.4 | |
General election 1929: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | William Mansfield | 16,938 | 36.3 | +6.9 |
| | Unionist | Park Goff | 15,255 | 32.6 | −11.0 |
| | Liberal | Charles Starmer | 14,535 | 31.1 | +4.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,683 | 3.7 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,131 | 84.4 | −1.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 55,463 | | |
| | Labour gain from Unionist | Labour gain from Unionist | Swing | +9.0 | |

### Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Robert Tatton Bower | 30,608 | 60.41 | |
| | Labour | William Mansfield | 20,060 | 39.59 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,548 | 20.82 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 50,668 | 85.92 | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
General election 1935: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Robert Tatton Bower | 26,508 | 52.72 |
| | Labour | William Mansfield | 23,776 | 47.28 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,732 | 5.44 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 50,284 | 81.15 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1940s

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 from 1939 and by the end of this year, the following candidates had been selected;
* Conservative: Robert Tatton Bower
* Labour: William Mansfield
* Liberal: Matthew Robinson Shawcross
General election 1945: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | George Willey | 27,660 | 48.95 | |
| | Conservative | Robert Tatton Bower | 19,739 | 34.93 | |
| | Liberal | Matthew Robinson Shawcross | 9,108 | 16.12 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,921 | 14.02 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,507 | 76.05 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | George Willey | 28,940 | 51.43 |
| | Conservative | Edward Charles Peake | 21,332 | 37.91 |
| | Liberal | Arthur Laurence Braithwaite Childe | 5,996 | 10.66 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,608 | 13.52 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,268 | 85.79 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1951: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | George Willey | 31,237 | 54.81 |
| | Conservative | Patrick Wall | 25,756 | 45.19 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,481 | 9.62 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,993 | 85.11 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
1952 Cleveland by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour Co-op | Arthur Palmer | 25,985 | 54.09 | −0.72 |
| | Conservative | Patrick Wall | 22,064 | 45.92 | +0.72 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,921 | 8.16 | −1.46 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48.049 | | |
| | Labour Co-op hold | Labour Co-op hold | Swing | | |
General election 1955: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour Co-op | Arthur Palmer | 27,649 | 50.15 |
| | Conservative | Wilf Proudfoot | 27,468 | 49.84 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 181 | 0.32 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 55,117 | 80.81 |
| | Labour Co-op hold | Labour Co-op hold | Swing | |
General election 1959: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Wilf Proudfoot | 30,445 | 51.40 | |
| | Labour Co-op | Arthur Palmer | 28,790 | 48.60 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,655 | 2.80 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 59,235 | 83.10 | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour Co-op | Conservative gain from Labour Co-op | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | James Tinn | 28,596 | 44.61 | |
| | Conservative | Wilf Proudfoot | 24,124 | 37.63 | |
| | Liberal | John William Stevens | 11,387 | 17.76 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,472 | 6.98 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 64,107 | 83.59 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |
General election 1966: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | James Tinn | 34,303 | 53.64 |
| | Conservative | Wilf Proudfoot | 22,423 | 35.06 |
| | Liberal | Michael Ford Pitts | 7,229 | 11.30 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,880 | 18.58 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 63,955 | 81.13 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Cleveland :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | James Tinn | 36,213 | 53.77 |
| | Conservative | Peter Coles Price | 31,130 | 46.23 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,083 | 7.54 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 67,343 | 72.94 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |