This article lists the Communist Party of Great Britain's election results in UK parliamentary elections.
Summary of general election performance
Year Number of Candidates Total votes Average voters per candidate Percentage of vote Saved deposits Change (percentage points) Number of MPs 1922 5 30,684 6,137 0.2 3 N/A 1 1923 4 39,448 9,862 0.2 4 0.0 0 1924 8 55,346 6,918 0.3 7 +0.1 1 1929 25 50,634 2,205 0.2 4 -0.1 0 1931 26 74,824 2,878 0.3 5 +0.1 0 1935 2 27,177 13,589 0.1 2 −0.2 1 1945 21 102,780 4,894 0.4 9 +0.3 2 1950 100 91,765 918 0.3 3 −0.1 0 1951 10 21,640 2,164 0.1 0 −0.2 0 1955 17 33,144 1,950 0.1 2 0.0 0 1959 18 30,896 1,716 0.1 1 0.0 0 1964 36 46,442 1,290 0.2 0 +0.1 0 1966 57 62,092 1,089 0.2 0 0.0 0 1970 57 37,970 655 0.1 0 −0.1 0 1974 February 44 32,743 744 0.1 1 0.0 0 1974 October 29 17,426 601 0.1 0 0.0 0 1979 38 16,858 444 0.1 0 0.0 0 1983 35 11,606 332 0.0 0 −0.1 0 1987 19 6,078 320 0.0 0 −0.1 0
Election results By-elections, 1921–22 By-election Candidate Votes % Position 1921 Caerphilly by-election 2,592 10.3 3
1922 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Bethnal Green North East 5,659 35.3 2 Dundee 5,906 5.0 6 Greenock 9,776 34.1 2 Motherwell 8,262 33.3 1
This list does not include Shapurji Saklatvala, a member of the party who was elected for the Labour Party, nor Joe Vaughan who also stood for the Labour Party.
1923 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Dundee 10,380 10.1 5 Glasgow Kelvingrove 10,021 39.0 2 Greenock 10,335 38.8 2 Motherwell 8,712 37.4 2
This list does not include William Paul, Morgan Philips Price, Shapurji Saklatvala, Joe Vaughan or Ellen Wilkinson, party members who stood for the Labour Party.
1924 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Battersea North 15,096 50.9 1 Bethnal Green South West 6,024 40.9 2 Birmingham West 7,158 32.1 2 Dundee 8,340 6.7 5 Greenock 7,590 29.0 2 Manchester Rusholme 5,328 20.2 3 Nottingham East 2,606 10.8 3 Streatham 3,204 13.8 3
By-elections, 1924–29 By-election Candidate Votes % Position 1928 Aberdeen North by-election 2,618 12.9 3
1929 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Aberdeen North 1,686 5.8 3 Battersea North 6,554 18.6 3 Bethnal Green South West 1,368 7.7 3 Bothwell 1,677 5.5 3 Caerphilly 829 2.2 4 Dundee 6,160 3.6 5 Dunfermline Burghs 1,712 6.5 3 Glasgow St Rollox 613 1.9 3 Greenock 7,005 25.1 3 Hackney South 331 1.1 4 Hamilton 395 1.6 3 Limehouse 245 1.0 4 Manchester Platting 401 1.0 3 Mansfield 533 1.1 4 Motherwell Isabel Brown 984 3.4 4 Ogmore 1,525 3.8 4 Rhondda East 5,789 15.2 3 Rutherglen 842 2.5 4 Seaham 1,431 2.9 4 Sheffield Attercliffe 1,731 5.5 4 Spen Valley 242 0.6 3 Tottenham South 490 1.5 4 Wallsend 744 1.8 4 West Fife 6,040 20.5 2 Wigan 1,307 2.8 3
By-elections, 1929–31 By-election Candidate Votes % Position 1929 Leeds South East by-election 512 4.2 2 1929 Kilmarnock by-election 1,448 4.4 3 1930 Sheffield Brightside by-election 1,084 4.4 4 1930 Glasgow Shettleston by-election 1,459 5.8 4 1930 Shipley by-election 701 1.7 4 1930 Whitechapel and St Georges by-election 2,106 9.6 4 1931 Ogmore by-election 5,219 21.2 2
1931 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Aberdeen North 3,980 11.1 3 Battersea North 3,021 8.9 3 Bethnal Green South West 2,970 17.4 3 Bermondsey West 873 4.2 3 Birmingham Duddeston 327 1.2 3 Bothwell 1,677 6.5 3 Burnley 512 0.8 3 Dundee 10,264 5.8 5 Edinburgh Central 1,319 4.5 3 Glasgow Gorbals 2,626 7.9 3 Glasgow Springburn 1,997 5.8 3 Gorton 1,000 2.6 3 Greenock 6,440 18.2 3 Greenwich 2,024 4.5 3 Hammersmith North 697 2.2 3 Liverpool Scotland 1,544 5.6 3 Ogmore 3,099 8.2 3 Rhondda East 10,359 31.9 2 Rhondda West 4,296 15.7 2 St Pancras North 456 1.3 3 St Pancras South East 332 1.2 3 Seaham 677 1.3 3 Sheffield Attercliffe 2,790 8.5 3 Sheffield Brightside 1,571 4.1 3 West Fife 6,829 22.1 3 Whitechapel and St Georges 2,658 11.2 3
By-elections, 1931–35 By-election Candidate Votes % Position 1932 Dunbartonshire by-election 2,870 7.5 4 1933 Rhondda East by-election 11,228 33.8 2 1933 Clay Cross by-election 3,434 10.8 3 1933 Skipton by-election 704 1.7 4 1934 Hammersmith North by-election 614 2.4 3 1934 Merthyr by-election 3,409 9.5 4
1935 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Rhondda East 13,655 38.2 2 West Fife 13,462 37.4 1
By-elections, 1935–45 By-election Candidate Votes % Position 1939 Stretford by-election 1,514 5.1 3 1940 Silvertown by-election 966 6.2 2 1940 Bow and Bromley by-election 506 4.2 2 1941 Dunbartonshire by-election 3,862 15.0 2
1945 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Abingdon 1,668 4.4 4 Birmingham Handsworth 1,390 3.4 5 Birmingham Sparkbrook 1,853 7.6 3 Coventry East 3,986 7.0 3 Glasgow Central 2,709 12.7 3 Glasgow Shettleston 4,122 12.3 4 Greenock 5,900 17.2 3 Hackney South 4,891 24.2 3 Harrow East 3,493 5.9 4 Hornsey 10,058 21.5 3 Kirkcaldy Burghs 2,898 8.5 4 Mile End 5,075 47.6 1 Preston 5,168 3.8 6 Rhondda East 15,761 45.5 2 Rossendale 1,663 4.6 4 Sevenoaks 676 1.6 4 Sheffield Brightside 4,115 13.0 3 Sheffield Hallam 2,253 6.7 4 Sunderland 4,501 3.3 5 West Fife 17,636 42.2 1 Westminster Abbey 2,964 17.6 3
By-elections, 1945–50 By-election Candidate Votes % Position 1948 Wigan by-election 1,647 3.4 3 1948 Glasgow Gorbals by-election 4,233 16.9 3 1949 St Pancras North by-election 854 3.0 3
1950 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Aberdare 1,382 3.1 4 Aberdeen North 1,391 2.7 4 Abingdon 396 0.9 4 Acton 663 1.5 4 Ashton-under-Lyne 459 1.1 3 Battersea North 655 1.8 4 Bedford 207 0.5 4 Bethnal Green 610 1.9 4 Bexley 481 0.9 4 Birkenhead 971 1.8 4 Birmingham Northfield 479 1.0 4 Birmingham Sparkbrook 355 0.9 3 Birmingham Yardley 347 0.8 4 Bradford East 543 1.2 4 Brentford and Chiswick 401 1.0 4 Bristol South East 524 1.1 4 Burnley 526 1.0 3 Chesterfield 554 1.0 4 Cirencester and Tewkesbury 423 0.9 4 Cities of London and Westminster 888 1.7 4 Clapham 619 1.3 4 Coventry East 487 1.0 4 Croydon West 336 0.7 4 Dagenham 883 1.5 4 Deptford 562 1.3 4 Don Valley 1,007 1.9 3 Dover 474 0.9 4 Dundee East 1,093 2.2 3 East Ham South 401 1.1 4 Edinburgh Central 646 1.9 4 Eton and Slough 614 1.5 4 Eye 277 0.6 4 Fulham East 399 1.1 4 Glasgow Bridgeton 858 2.5 4 Glasgow Gorbals 2,426 5.9 3 Glasgow Govan 1,547 3.7 4 Glasgow Scotstoun 1,088 2.6 4 Glasgow Shettleston 1,678 4.1 3 Glasgow Springburn 1,764 4.1 4 Greenock 1,228 3.0 4 Hackney South 2,199 3.8 4 Hampstead 1,603 2.8 4 Harrow East 633 1.2 4 Hayes and Harlington 593 1.6 4 Hendon North 918 2.0 4 Hornsey 1,191 1.9 4 Huyton 387 0.9 4 Ilford South 913 1.6 4 Islington South West 834 1.8 4 Kensington North 551 1.3 4 Kettering 368 0.6 4 Kilmarnock 860 2.2 4 Leeds North East 612 1.6 4 Leicester North East 327 0.7 4 Lewisham South 635 1.3 4 Liverpool Scotland 615 1.4 3 Manchester Blackley 562 1.1 4 Manchester Gorton 873 1.7 4 Manchester Wythenshawe 588 1.3 4 Mansfield 482 0.9 4 Middlesbrough East 367 0.8 4 Motherwell 1,007 2.4 4 Neath 1,584 3.5 4 Newcastle-upon-Tyne East 492 0.9 3 Nottingham North West 719 1.5 4 Ogmore 1,691 3.5 3 Oldham West 438 0.9 4 Oxford 494 0.8 4 Paddington North 417 1.2 4 Peckham 886 1.8 4 Poplar 540 1.4 4 Portsmouth West 251 0.5 3 Preston North 366 0.8 4 Rhondda East 4,463 12.7 2 St Pancras North 967 1.9 4 Sheffield Brightside 1,081 2.3 3 Sheffield Hillsborough 759 1.5 3 Sheffield Park 909 2.0 3 Shipley 237 0.6 4 Southall 839 1.7 4 South Shields 415 0.7 4 Southwark 668 1.3 4 Stalybridge and Hyde 389 0.8 4 Stepney 5,991 12.5 3 Stirling and Falkirk 801 1.8 4 Swindon 295 0.7 4 Totnes 423 0.8 4 Tottenham 802 1.5 4 Vauxhall 508 1.3 4 Warrington 496 1.1 4 Wembley South 430 1.0 4 West Dunbartonshire 1,198 2.9 3 West Fife 9,301 21.6 3 West Ham South 730 1.6 4 West Lothian 664 1.5 4 Wigan 1,243 2.4 4 Willesden West 938 1.7 4 Woodford 827 1.3 4 Woolwich East 601 1.4 4 Wycombe 199 0.4 4
By-elections, 1950–51 By-election Candidate Votes % Position 1950 Sheffield Neepsend by-election 729 2.4 3
1951 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Dundee West 1,508 2.7 3 East Dunbartonshire 2,158 4.1 3 Glasgow Gorbals 2,553 6.2 3 Hackney South 1,744 3.0 3 Lewisham South 578 1.2 3 Rhondda East 2,948 8.6 3 Sheffield Brightside 1,116 2.5 3 Stepney 3,436 7.3 3 West Fife 4,728 10.5 3 Woodford 871 1.3 3
By-elections, 1951–55 By-election Candidate Votes % Position 1954 Motherwell by-election 1,457 4.3 3
1955 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Birmingham Perry Barr 928 2.5 3 Dundee West 1,335 2.6 3 East Dunbartonshire 2,448 4.9 3 Glasgow Gorbals 2,491 6.8 3 Glasgow Springburn 1,532 5.5 3 Hackney North and Stoke Newington 1,525 3.4 4 Hackney Central 1,530 3.5 3 Hayes and Harlington 886 2.6 3 Hornsey 1,442 2.6 3 Nottingham North 916 1.9 3 Rhondda East 4,544 15.1 2 St Pancras North 1,303 3.0 3 Sheffield Brightside 1,461 3.5 3 Southwark 959 2.4 3 Stepney 2,888 7.6 3 West Fife 4,728 10.5 3 Wigan 1,567 3.4 3
By-elections, 1955–59 By-election Candidate Votes % Position 1958 Wigan by-election 972 2.5 3
1959 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Birmingham Perry Barr 424 1.1 4 Dundee West 1,087 2.1 3 East Dunbartonshire 2,200 4.0 3 Glasgow Gorbals 1,932 5.9 3 Glasgow Govan 1,869 4.9 4 Glasgow Springburn 1,235 4.5 3 Hayes and Harlington 527 1.4 4 Hornsey 1,107 2.0 4 Neath 1,962 4.6 3 Nottingham North 1,331 2.6 4 Rhondda East 4,580 14.5 2 St Pancras North 1,230 3.0 4 Sheffield Brightside 1,373 3.3 3 Southwark 1,395 3.6 3 Stepney 2,548 6.7 3 West Fife 3,828 8.4 4 Wigan 945 2.0 3 Willesden West 1,324 3.0 3
By-elections, 1959–64 By-election Candidate Votes % Position 1962 West Lothian by-election 1,511 3.6 5 1963 Swansea East by-election 773 2.5 6 1963 Leeds South by-election 670 2.2 4 1963 Luton by-election 490 1.1 4 1963 Dundee West by-election 1,170 2.6 4 1963 Manchester Openshaw by-election 1,185 4.9 3
1964 general election Constituency Candidate Votes % Position Aberavon 1,260 2.7 4 Battersea North 471 2.0 4 Birmingham Small Heath 926 3.3 3 Coventry East 1,138 1.9 3 Dagenham 1,070 2.1 4 Dundee West 1,228 2.4 3 East Dunbartonshire 1,171 2.0 3 Glasgow Gorbals 1,339 5.6 3 Glasgow Govan 1,378 4.4 3 Glasgow Springburn 950 3.7 4 Goole 1,165 2.8 3 Hayes and Harlington 873 2.6 3 Hornsey 1,258 2.6 4 Islington South West 1,377 5.1 3 Kinross and Western Perthshire 127 0.5 4 Leeds South 928 2.6 3 Liverpool Scotland 725 2.8 3 Llanelli 1,061 2.2 5 Luton 567 1.2 3 Manchester Openshaw 1,947 5.1 3 Mitcham 657 1.2 4 Motherwell 1,565 4.0 3 Neath 2,432 6.0 3 Newcastle-upon-Tyne Central 532 1.8 3 Nottingham North 1,579 3.1 3 Pontypool 1,329 3.6 3 Rhondda East 3,385 11.8 2 St Pancras North 1,140 3.4 4 Sheffield Brightside 1,356 3.5 3 Southwark 1,599 4.9 3 Stepney 2,454 7.9 3 Swindon 944 2.1 3 West Fife 3,273 7.5 3 West Lothian 610 1.2 4 Wigan 988 2.4 3 Willesden West 1,130 3.0 3
1966 general election