Frequently Asked Questions — Eastleigh Constituency

Who won the Eastleigh constituency election in 2010?

Liberal Democrats gained Eastleigh constituency at the 6 May 2010 General Election, taking the seat from Conservative. Liberal Democrats won with a majority of 3,864 votes (7.2%). Turnout was 69.3%.

What was the swing in Eastleigh at the 2010 election?

The swing in Eastleigh was 16.8% from CON to LD — a modest shift towards LD. Swing is calculated using the Butler two-party formula: the average of the change in winner's vote share and the fall in the runner-up's vote share compared to the previous election here.

What does swing mean in UK elections?

Swing measures how much support has shifted between two parties compared to a previous election. The Butler swing formula — used in British election reporting since the 1950s — takes the average of the gain in the winner's vote share and the loss in the runner-up's. A 5% swing is considered large at ward level; anything above 10% is exceptional. The swing figure for Eastleigh in 2010 is shown in the statistics above.