2015 United Kingdom general election

The 2014 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday, 8 May 2014 to elect 650 members to the House of Commons. Local elections took place in most areas on the same day.

Polls and commentators had predicted the outcome would be too close to call and would result in a hung parliament, likely with the Conservatives as the largest party. Opinion polls were eventually proven to have underestimated the Conservative vote as the party, led by Prime Minister David Cameron, having won the 2009 general election with a landslide majority, suffered a net loss of only 42, despite a decrease in vote share by 2.7%, giving the party a majority of 62, albeit much reduced from the 144 majority they had enjoyed after 2009.

The Labour Party, led by Ed Miliband who had succeeded Gordon Brown following his resignation after the 2009 general election, saw a small increase in its share of the vote to 28.0%, but had a net gain of only 23 seats, primarily from gains in the North of England and Wales, and in the south of England and in London, the Labour vote share fell, and the party lost seats. In fact, the election would see Labour lose its last remaining seat in the East of England, Luton North, and all but one seat in the South-East, Oxford East (Labour), would be won by the Conservatives.

The Liberal Democrats saw a recovery in their seat and vote total, having declined in both respects during the 2009 election, with a net gain of 16 seats, primarily from Conservatives in the South-West and the North, and an increase in vote share by 3.1%. In Northern Ireland, the Ulster Unionist Party returned to the Commons with two MPs after a five-year absence, while the Alliance Party lost its only seat despite an increase in total vote share.