# East Grinstead (UK Parliament constituency)

East Grinstead was a parliamentary constituency in the Kingdom of England, the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. It first existed as a Parliamentary borough from 1307, returning two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons elected by the bloc vote system. The borough was disfranchised under the Reform Act 1832, but the name was revived at the 1885 election when the Redistribution of Seats Act created a new single-member county division of the same name.
Upon its abolition for the 1983 election, its territory was divided between Mid Sussex and Wealden.

## Boundaries

1885–1918: The Sessional Divisions of Cuckfield (except the parish of Crawley), East Grinstead, and Uckfield (except the parishes of East Heathley and Waldron).
1918–1950: The Urban Districts of Burgess Hill, Cuckfield, East Grinstead, Hayward's Heath, and Uckfield, and the Rural Districts of Cuckfield, East Grinstead, and Uckfield.
1950–1955: The Urban Districts of Cuckfield and East Grinstead, the Rural District of Uckfield, in the Rural District of Cuckfield the parishes of Ardingly, Balcombe, Bolney, Cuckfield Rural, Horsted Keynes, Lindfield Rural, Slaugham, West Hoathly, and Worth, and in the Rural District of Battle the parishes of Burwash, Etchingham, and Ticehurst.
1955–1974: As 1950 less the Battle RD parishes.
1974–1983: The Urban District of East Grinstead, and the Rural District of Uckfield.

## Members of Parliament
### MPs 1307–1660

| Year | First member | Second member |
| 1388 (Feb) | John Dyne | John Heldele |
| 1388 (Sep) | William Nelond | Richard Woghere |
| 1390 (Jan) | |
| 1390 (Nov) | |
| 1391 | John Alfray I | John Dyne |
| 1393 | Thomas Alleyn | Thomas Rasse |
| 1394 | |
| 1395 | Thomas Farlegh | William atte Hull |
| 1397 (Jan) | John Dyne | John Punget |
| 1397 (Sep) | John Dyne | John Punget |
| 1399 | John Dyne | Richard Woghere |
| 1401 | |
| 1402 | John Dyne | Richard Woghere |
| 1404 (Jan) | |
| 1404 (Oct) | |
| 1406 | |
| 1407 | John Dyne | Richard Woghere |
| 1410 | |
| 1411 | |
| 1413 (Feb) | |
| 1413 (May) | Thomas Alleyn | John Hoke |
| 1414 (Apr) | |
| 1414 (Nov) | John Dyne | John Woghere |
| 1415 | |
| 1416 (Mar) | John Ermyte | John Mason |
| 1416 (Oct) | |
| 1417 | |
| 1419 | William Fenningham | John Hamme |
| 1420 | |
| 1421 (May) | Richard Fowell | John Woghere |
| 1421 (Dec) | John Alfray II | John Woghere |
| 1433 | Thomas Russell |
| 1447 John Alfray | 1457 | Ralph Legh |
| 1459 John Alfray | 1510-1523 | No names known |
| 1529 | William Rutter | Edward Goodwin |
| 1536 | ? |
| 1539 | ? |
| 1542 | ? | John Sackville |
| 1545 | ? |
| 1547 | Jasper Culpeper | John Sackville II, died and replaced by Jan 1552 by George Darrell |
| 1553 (Mar) | Sir Robert Oxenbridge | George Darrell |
| 1553 (Oct) | Sir Thomas Stradling | John Story |
| 1554 (Apr) | Richard Whalley | Anthony Stapleton |
| 1554 (Nov) | Thomas Duffield | |
| 1555 | ?William Barnes | John Wiseman |
| 1558 | Thomas Farnham | Thomas Parker |
| 1559 | Thomas Sackville | Humphrey Llwyd |
| 1562–3 | John Sackville | Lawrence Banester |
| 1571 | John Jeffrey | Henry Berkeley |
| 1572 | Thomas Cure | Michael Heneage |
| 1584 | Thomas Cure | Francis Alford |
| 1586 | John Covert | Drew Pickesse |
| 1589 | Francis Alford | Thomas Frere |
| 1593 | Reade Stafford | John Shurley |
| 1597 | George Rivers | Richard Baker |
| 1601 | Sir Henry Compton | George Rivers |
| 1604 | Sir Henry Compton | Sir John Swynnerton |
| 1614 | Sir Henry Compton | George Rivers |
| 1621 | Sir Henry Compton | Thomas Pelham |
| 1624 | Robert Heath | Thomas Caldicot |
| 1625 | Robert Heath | Sir Henry Compton |
| 1626 | Robert Goodwin | Sir Henry Compton |
| 1628-1629 | Robert Goodwin | Sir Henry Compton |
| 1629–1640 | No Parliaments summoned | No Parliaments summoned |
| 1640 (Apr) | Sir Henry Compton | Robert Goodwin |
| 1640 (Nov) | Lord Buckhurst, disabled 1644 | Robert Goodwin |
| 1648 | Robert Goodwin | John Baker |
| 1653 | Not represented in Barebones Parliament | Not represented in Barebones Parliament |
| 1654 | John Goodwin | (one seat only) |
| 1656 | John Goodwin | (one seat only) |
| 1659 | Robert Goodwin | George Courthope |

### MPs 1660–1832

| Year | First member | Second member |
| 1660 | Marmaduke Gresham | George Courthope |
| 1661 | Lord Buckhurst | George Courthope |
| 1675 | Edward Sackville | George Courthope |
| 1678 | Thomas Pelham | George Courthope |
| 12 February 1679 | Thomas Pelham | Edward Sackville |
| 7 April 1679 | Thomas Pelham | Henry Powle |
| 19 April 1679 | Thomas Pelham | Sir Thomas Littleton, Bt |
| 19 August 1679 | Goodwin Wharton | William Jephson |
| 1681 | Sir Cyril Wyche | Henry Powle |
| 1685 | Simon Smith | Thomas Jones |
| 1689 | Sir Thomas Dyke | Thomas Sackville |
| 1693 | Sir Thomas Dyke | Simon Smith |
| February 1695 | Sir Thomas Dyke | The Earl of Orrery |
| November 1695 | Sir Thomas Dyke | John Conyers |
| 1698 | The Earl of Orrery | John Conyers |
| January 1701 | Matthew Prior | John Conyers |
| November 1701 | The Earl of Orrery | John Conyers |
| 1702 | John Toke | John Conyers |
| 1708 | Viscount Lumley | Henry Campion |
| 1710 | John Conyers | Leonard Gale |
| 1713 | John Conyers | Hon. Spencer Compton |
| 1715 | John Conyers | The Viscount Shannon |
| March 1722 | John Conyers | Hon. Sir Spencer Compton |
| November 1722 | John Conyers | The Viscount Shannon |
| 1725 | Edward Conyers | The Viscount Shannon |
| 1727 | The Viscount Palmerston | The Viscount Shannon |
| 1734 | The Earl of Middlesex | Edward Conyers |
| 1741 | The Earl of Middlesex | Sir Whistler Webster |
| 1742 | John Butler | Sir Whistler Webster |
| 1747 | Sydney Smythe | Sir Whistler Webster |
| 1751 | Hon. Joseph Yorke | Sir Whistler Webster |
| March 1761 | The Earl of Middlesex | Lord George Sackville |
| December 1761 | The Earl of Middlesex | Sir Thomas Hales, Bt |
| 1762 | The Earl of Middlesex | John Irwin |
| 1765 | Sir Charles Farnaby | John Irwin |
| 1767 | Lord George Sackville | John Irwin |
| 1782 | Henry Arthur Herbert | John Irwin |
| 1783 | Henry Arthur Herbert | George Medley |
| 1786 | James Cuninghame | George Medley |
| 1788 | Robert Cuninghame | George Medley |
| 1789 | Richard Ford | George Medley |
| 1790 | Nathaniel Dance | William Hamilton Nisbet |
| 1796 | Nathaniel Dance | James Strange |
| 1802 | Sir Henry Strachey | Daniel Giles |
| 1807 | Sir Nathaniel Dance-Holland, Bt. | Charles Ellis |
| January 1812 | Richard Wellesley | Charles Ellis |
| March 1812 | George Gunning | Charles Ellis |
| June 1812 | Nicholas Vansittart | Charles Ellis |
| October 1812 | George Gunning | James Stephen |
| 1815 | George Gunning | Sir George Johnstone Hope |
| May 1818 | George Gunning | Lord Strathavon |
| June 1818 | The Hon. Charles Jenkinson | Lord Strathavon |
| 1829 | Viscount Holmesdale | Lord Strathavon |
| 1830 | Viscount Holmesdale | Frederick Richard West |
* Constituency abolished (1832)

### MPs 1885–1983

* Constituency revived (1885)
| Election | Election | Name | Party | Notes |
| | 1885 | George Gregory | Conservative | MP for East Sussex 1868–1885 |
| | 1886 | Alfred Gathorne-Hardy | Conservative | MP for Canterbury 1878–1880. Son of 1st Earl of Cranbrook |
| | 1895 | George Goschen | Conservative | Governor of Madras 1924–1929; 2nd Viscount Goschen 1907–1952 |
| | 1906 | Charles Corbett | Liberal |
| | 1910 (Jan) | Henry Cautley | Conservative | ennobled in 1936 as Baron Cautley, triggering a by-election |
| | 1936 by-election | Ralph Clarke | Conservative |
| | 1955 | Evelyn Emmet | Conservative | Made a life peer in 1965 as Baroness Emmet of Amberley, triggering a by-election |
| | 1965 by-election | Geoffrey Johnson-Smith | Conservative | Former broadcaster. MP for Wealden 1983–2001 |
| 1983 | 1983 | Constituency abolished. See Wealden and Mid Sussex | Constituency abolished. See Wealden and Mid Sussex | Constituency abolished. See Wealden and Mid Sussex |

## Elections
### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1885: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | George Gregory | 3,530 | 57.8 | |
| | Liberal | Charles John Heald | 2,579 | 42.2 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 951 | 15.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,109 | 79.8 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 7,660 | | |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |
General election 1886: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Alfred Gathorne-Hardy | 3,289 | 63.7 | +5.9 |
| | Liberal | Charles John Heald | 1,877 | 36.3 | −5.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,412 | 27.4 | +11.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 5,166 | 67.4 | −12.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 7,660 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +5.9 | |

### Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Alfred Gathorne-Hardy | 3,987 | 62.9 | −0.8 |
| | Liberal | Edward George Jenkinson | 2,349 | 37.1 | +0.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,638 | 25.8 | −1.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,336 | 72.4 | +5.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 8,754 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | −0.8 | |
General election 1895: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | George Goschen | 3,731 | 56.5 | −6.4 |
| | Liberal | Charles Corbett | 2,874 | 43.5 | +6.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 857 | 13.0 | −12.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,605 | 71.3 | −1.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 9,262 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -6.4 | |

### Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | George Goschen | 3,890 | 56.4 | −0.1 |
| | Liberal | Charles Corbett | 3,003 | 43.6 | +0.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 887 | 12.8 | −0.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,893 | 71.8 | +0.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 9,596 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | −0.1 | |
General election 1906: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Charles Corbett | 4,793 | 51.4 | +7.8 |
| | Conservative | Edgar Crookshank | 4,531 | 48.6 | −7.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 262 | 2.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,324 | 86.9 | +15.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,726 | | |
| | Liberal gain from Conservative | Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +7.8 | |

### Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Henry Cautley | 6,563 | 64.2 | +15.6 |
| | Liberal | Charles Corbett | 3,660 | 35.8 | −15.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,903 | 28.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,223 | 88.4 | +1.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,562 | | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal | Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | +15.6 | |
General election December 1910: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Henry Cautley | 5,926 | 62.7 | −1.5 |
| | Liberal | Henry Norman Spalding | 3,531 | 37.3 | +1.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,395 | 25.4 | −3.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,457 | 81.8 | −6.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,562 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -1.5 | |
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: Henry Cautley
* Liberal: Richard Arthur Austen-Leigh
By-election, 1918: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Henry Cautley | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Unionist hold |
General election 1918: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| C | Unionist | Henry Cautley | 12,584 | 67.0 | +4.3 |
| | Labour | David Pole | 6,208 | 33.0 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,376 | 34.0 | +8.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 18,792 | 52.3 | −29.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 35,955 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | +4.3 | |
| C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. ||||||

### Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Henry Cautley | 15,981 | 71.0 | +4.0 |
| | Labour | Thomas Crawford | 6,527 | 29.0 | −4.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,454 | 42.0 | +8.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 22,508 | 58.2 | +5.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 38,664 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | +4.0 | |
General election 1923: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Henry Cautley | 14,215 | 68.8 | −2.2 |
| | Labour | Thomas Crawford | 6,451 | 31.2 | +2.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,764 | 37.6 | −4.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 20,666 | 52.4 | −5.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 39,405 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −2.2 | |
General election 1924: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Henry Cautley | 18,365 | 64.6 | −4.2 |
| | Liberal | Godfrey Frerichs Mowatt | 5,604 | 19.7 | New |
| | Labour | John Morgan | 4,479 | 15.7 | −15.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,761 | 44.9 | +7.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 28,448 | 70.2 | +17.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 40,500 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | +5.7 | |
General election 1929: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Henry Cautley | 21,940 | 57.9 | −6.7 |
| | Liberal | Barbara Bliss | 9,718 | 25.6 | +5.9 |
| | Labour | Thomas Crawford | 6,265 | 16.5 | +0.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,222 | 32.3 | −12.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 37,923 | 68.5 | −1.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 55,352 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −6.3 | |

### Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Henry Cautley | 34,826 | 87.2 | +29.3 |
| | Labour | Evan Durbin | 5,121 | 12.8 | −3.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 29,705 | 74.4 | +42.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,947 | 69.2 | +0.7 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
* Liberal candidate Lewis R. Jones withdrew at the last minute.
General election 1935: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Henry Cautley | 29,440 | 78.4 | −8.8 |
| | Labour | Stanislaus Seuffert | 8,097 | 21.6 | +8.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 21,343 | 56.8 | −17.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 37,537 | 61.2 | −8.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
1936 East Grinstead by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Ralph Clarke | 22,207 | 79.6 | +1.2 |
| | Labour | Albert Edward Millett | 5,708 | 20.4 | −1.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 16,499 | 59.2 | +2.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 27,915 | 45.5 | −15.7 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +1.2 | |
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: Ralph Clarke
* Liberal: William Cavendish Searle

### Elections in the 1940s

General election 1945: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Ralph Clarke | 28,273 | 57.1 | −21.3 |
| | Labour | David George Packham | 12,519 | 25.3 | +3.7 |
| | Liberal | John Charles McLaughlin | 8,711 | 17.6 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 15,754 | 31.8 | −25.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 49,503 | 70.9 | +9.7 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Ralph Clarke | 29,786 | 55.1 | −2.0 |
| | Labour | Catherine Williamson | 12,983 | 24.0 | −1.3 |
| | Liberal | John Charles McLaughlin | 11,329 | 20.9 | +3.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 16,803 | 31.1 | −0.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 54,098 | 81.7 | +11.8 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1951: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Ralph Clarke | 32,803 | 60.3 | +5.2 |
| | Labour | Herbert Atkinson | 14,271 | 26.2 | +2.2 |
| | Liberal | John Charles McLaughlin | 7,375 | 13.5 | −7.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 18,532 | 34.1 | +3.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 54,449 | 80.3 | −1.4 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1955: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Evelyn Emmet | 28,450 | 61.5 | +1.2 |
| | Labour | Martin Mason | 11,750 | 25.4 | −0.8 |
| | Liberal | Judith St John Thornton | 6,034 | 13.1 | −0.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 16,700 | 36.1 | +2.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,234 | 75.1 | −5.2 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1959: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Evelyn Emmet | 31,759 | 62.3 | +0.8 |
| | Labour | Robert William G Humphreys | 10,104 | 19.8 | −5.6 |
| | Liberal | Patrick Furnell | 9,100 | 17.9 | +4.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 21,655 | 42.5 | +6.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 50,963 | 77.9 | +2.8 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Evelyn Emmet | 29,094 | 53.2 | −10.1 |
| | Liberal | Richard Holme | 14,753 | 26.7 | +8.8 |
| | Labour | William H Hill | 10,859 | 19.8 | 0.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 14,341 | 26.5 | −16.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 54,706 | 78.0 | +0.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
1965 East Grinstead by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Geoffrey Johnson-Smith | 24,896 | 55.0 | +1.8 |
| | Liberal | Richard Holme | 14,279 | 31.5 | +4.8 |
| | Labour | Jon Antony A Evans | 6,101 | 13.5 | −6.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,617 | 23.5 | −3.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,276 | 64.5 | −13.5 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -1.4 | |
General election 1966: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Geoffrey Johnson-Smith | 31,595 | 53.2 | 0.0 |
| | Liberal | James H Downie | 13,611 | 27.0 | +0.3 |
| | Labour | Arthur Harris Roberts | 11,938 | 19.8 | 0.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 17,984 | 26.2 | −0.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 57,144 | 76.8 | −1.2 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Geoffrey Johnson-Smith | 38,359 | 61.2 | +8.0 |
| | Liberal | David Carleton Bruce Smithers | 12,343 | 19.7 | −7.3 |
| | Labour | Tony Banks | 12,014 | 19.2 | −0.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 26,016 | 41.5 | +15.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 62,716 | 72.5 | −4.3 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election February 1974: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Geoffrey Johnson-Smith | 23,928 | 53.3 | −7.9 |
| | Liberal | Peter Hasler Billenness | 15,351 | 34.2 | +14.5 |
| | Labour | William J Short | 5,629 | 12.5 | −6.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,577 | 19.1 | −22.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,908 | 81.5 | +9.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election October 1974: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Geoffrey Johnson-Smith | 22,035 | 53.2 | −0.1 |
| | Liberal | Paul Hayden | 12,755 | 30.8 | −3.4 |
| | Labour | David William John Blake | 6,648 | 16.0 | +3.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,280 | 22.4 | +3.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,438 | 74.5 | −7.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
General election 1979: East Grinstead :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Geoffrey Johnson-Smith | 28,279 | 62.0 | +8.8 |
| | Liberal | Jeremy Nieboer | 11,102 | 24.4 | −6.4 |
| | Labour | RJ Taylor | 6,196 | 13.6 | −2.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 17,177 | 37.6 | +15.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,577 | 77.1 | +2.6 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |