1708 British general election

First election held after the Acts of Union 1707 May 2024 Kingdom of Great Britain parliamentary no 1702 (Scotland)← 1705 (E&W England and Wales) List of members of the House of Commons at Westminster 1705–1708 1710 British general election 1710 All 558 seats in the House of Commons 280 List of MPs elected in the British general election, 1708 1708 4 30 1708 7 7 yes 160x160px Portrait of John Somers, Baron Somers.jpg Lord Somers 1695 Whigs (British political party) 268 45 Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin by Sir Godfrey Kneller, Bt (2).jpg Earl of Godolphin 1707 Tories (British political party) 225 45 The House of Commons following the 1708 General Election File:English Parliament of General Election 1708.svg The 1708 British general election was the first general election to be held after the Acts of Union had united the Parliaments of England and Scotland. The election saw the Whigs gain a majority in the House of Commons, and by November the Whig-dominated parliament had succeeded in pressuring the Queen into accepting the Whig Junto into government for the first time since the late 1690s. The Whigs only able to take partial control of the government, however, owing to the continued presence of the moderate Tory Godolphin in the cabinet (as Lord High Treasurer) and the opposition of the Queen. Contests were held in 95 of the 269 English and Welsh constituencies and 28 of the 45 Scottish constituencies. Following the election, Whig MP Lord Somers was appointed as Lord President of the Council. However, moderate Tory Lord Godolphin remained as Lord High Treasurer and the Godolphin–Marlborough ministry remained in place. Summary of the constituencies In England, there were 513 MPs elected from 245 constituencies (203 boroughs, 40 counties, and 2 universities). In Wales, there were 24 MPs from 24 constituencies. In Scotland, there were 45 MPs from 45 constituencies (30 counties and 15 burghs).Constituencies 1690-1715 History of Parliament Online https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/research/constituencies/constituencies-1690-1715 2024-09-02 www.historyofparliamentonline.org 2 September 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240902095223/https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/research/constituencies/constituencies-1690-1715 dead Dates of election The first general election held since the Union took place between 30 April 1708 and 7 July 1708. At this period elections did not take place at the same time in every constituency. The returning officer in each county or borough fixed the precise date (see hustings for details of the conduct of the elections).May 2026 Results 300px In England and Wales, the Whigs took 268 seats and the Tories took 225, with 20 unclassified. The 45 in Scotland could be classified as ministerial supporters.1708 History of Parliament Online https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1690-1715/parliament/1708 2024-09-02 www.historyofparliamentonline.org 2 September 2024 https://web.archive.org/web/20240902095223/https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1690-1715/parliament/1708 dead Seats summary Parliamentary seats #ddd 600px 380px Whig Whigs (British political party) 56.7 Tory #3333CC 43.3 See also List of parliaments of Great Britain 2nd Parliament of Great Britain List of MPs elected in the British general election, 1708 References British Electoral Facts 1832–1999, compiled and edited by Colin Rallings and Michael Thrasher (Ashgate Publishing Ltd 2000). (For dates of elections before 1832, see the footnote to Table 5.02). External links History of Parliament: Members 1690–1715 https://web.archive.org/web/20241001025056/https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/research/members/members-1690-1715 1 October 2024 History of Parliament: Constituencies 1690–1715 https://web.archive.org/web/20241003212921/https://historyofparliamentonline.org/research/constituencies/constituencies-1690-1715 3 October 2024 Category:1708 in politics General election 1708