Yeovil is a

constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

created in 1918 and represented in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace ...

. Since the

2024 General Election This is a list of elections that were held in 2024. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. * 2024 United Nations Security Council election * 2024 national electoral calendar * 2024 local electo ...

, the constituency has been represented by

Liberal Democrat Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Liberal Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties have usually followed liberalism as ideology, although they can vary widely from very progr ...

MP Adam Dance.

Boundaries

Historic

1918–1974: The Municipal Boroughs of Yeovil and Chard, the Urban Districts of Crewkerne and Ilminster, the Rural Districts of Chard, Langport, Yeovil. 1974–1983: As 1918 but with redrawn boundaries. 1983–1997: The District of Yeovil wards of Blackdown, Chard North East, Chard North West, Chard Parish, Chard South East, Chard South West, Chinnock, Coker, Crewkerne Town, Dowlish, Egwood, Hazelbury, Houndstone, Ilminster Town, Lynches, Mudford, Neroche, St Michael's, South Petherton, Stoke, Windwhistle, Yeovil Central, Yeovil East, Yeovil North, Yeovil Preston, Yeovil South, Yeovil West. ''The communities of

Martock Martock is a large village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Somerset, England. It is situated on the edge of the Somerset Levels, north-west of Yeovil in the South Somerset district. The parish includes Hurst, approximately one ...

Somerton Somerton may refer to: Places Australia * Somerton, New South Wales * Somerton Park, South Australia, a seaside Adelaide suburb ** Somerton Man, unsolved case of an unidentified man found dead in 1948 on the Somerton Park beach *Somerton, Victoria ...

and

Ilchester Ilchester is a village and civil parish, situated on the River Yeo or Ivel, north of Yeovil, in the English county of Somerset. Originally a Roman town, and later a market town, Ilchester has a rich medieval history and was a notable settleme ...

were now included in the new seat of Somerton and Frome.'' 1997–2010: The District of South Somerset wards of Blackdown, Chard Avishayes, Chard Combe, Chard Crimchard, Chard Holyrood, Chard Jocelyn, Coker, Crewkerne, Egwood, Hamdon, Houndstone, Ilminster, Mudford, Neroche, Parrett, St Michael's, South Petherton, Tatworth and Forton, Windwhistle, Yeovil Central, Yeovil East, Yeovil Preston, Yeovil South, Yeovil West, Yeovil Without. 2010–2024: The District of South Somerset wards of Blackdown, Brympton, Chard Avishayes, Chard Combe, Chard Crimchard, Chard Holyrood, Chard Jocelyn, Coker, Crewkerne, Egwood, Hamdon, Ilminster, Ivelchester, Neroche, Parrett, St Michael's, South Petherton, Tatworth and Forton, Windwhistle, Yeovil Central, Yeovil East, Yeovil South, Yeovil West, Yeovil Without.

Current

Further to the

2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies The 2023 review of Westminster constituencies was the most recent cycle of the process to redraw the Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, constituency map for the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. The new constituency b ...

which came into effect for the

2024 general election This is a list of elections that were held in 2024. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. * 2024 United Nations Security Council election * 2024 national electoral calendar * 2024 local electo ...

, the constituency was defined as being composed of the following as they existed on 1 December 2020: * The District of South Somerset wards of: Blackdown & Tatworth; Brympton; Chard Avishayes; Chard Combe; Chard Crimchard; Chard Holyrood; Chard Jocelyn; Coker; Crewkerne; Eggwood; Ilminster; Neroche; Parrett; South Petherton; Windwhistle; Yeovil College; Yeovil Lyde; Yeovil Summerlands; Yeovil Westland; Yeovil Without. With effect from 1 April 2023, the District of South Somerset was abolished and absorbed into the new unitary authority of

. Consequently, the constituency now comprises the following electoral divisions of Somerset from the 2024 general election: * Brympton (most); Chard North; Chard South; Coker (most); Crewkerne; Ilminster; South Petherton and Islemoor (most); Yeovil Central; Yeovil East; Yeovil South; Yeovil West. ''In order to bring the electorate within the permitted range, rural areas to the north of the town of Yeovil were transferred to the new constituency of

Glastonbury and Somerton Glastonbury and Somerton is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament. Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, it was first contested at the 2024 general election. It has been represent ...

.'' The seat covers the towns of

Yeovil Yeovil () is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Somerset, England. It is close to Somerset's southern border with Dorset, west of London, south of Bristol, west of Sherborne and east of Taunton. The population of the bui ...

Chard Chard (; '' Beta vulgaris'' subsp. ''vulgaris'', Cicla Group and Flavescens Group) is a green leafy vegetable. In the cultivars of the Flavescens Group, or Swiss chard, the leaf stalks are large and often prepared separately from the leaf b ...

Crewkerne Crewkerne ( ) is a town and electoral ward in south Somerset, England, southwest of Yeovil and east of Chard. The civil parish of West Crewkerne includes the hamlets of Coombe, Woolminstone and Henley, and borders the county of Dorset to the s ...

and

Ilminster Ilminster is a market town and civil parish in Somerset, England, with a population of 5,808. Bypassed in 1988, the town now lies just east of the junction of the A303 (London to Exeter) and the A358 (Taunton to Chard and Axminster). The parish ...

in the county of

History

From 1918 until 1983, Yeovil always returned a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

MP (though by only narrow margins over Labour in the 1940s and 1950s). There then followed a period of over 30 years during which the seat was represented by a member of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

or their successors, the Liberal Democrats; firstly former leader

Paddy Ashdown Jeremy John Durham Ashdown, Baron Ashdown of Norton-sub-Hamdon (27 February 194122 December 2018), better known as Paddy Ashdown, was a British politician and diplomat who served as Leader of the Liberal Democrats from 1988 to 1999. Internation ...

(1983–2001) and then former Chief Secretary to the Treasury

David Laws David Anthony Laws (born 30 November 1965) is a British politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Yeovil from 2001 to 2015. A member of the Liberal Democrats, in his third parliament he served at the outset as a Cabinet Minis ...

(2001 to 2015). At the 2015 election, the seat returned to its former Conservative allegiance as

Marcus Fysh Marcus John Hudson Fysh (born 8 November 1970) is a British politician and former investment manager who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Yeovil from 2015 until he lost the seat in 2024. He served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of Stat ...

defeated Laws by over 5,000 votes. The South Somerset district voted 57% to leave the European Union, and academic analysis estimates that Yeovil itself voted 59% to leave. There was a swing of 7.7% away from the pro-Remain Liberal Democrats towards the pro-Leave Conservatives, which made the seat much safer in 2017, Marcus Fysh's majority increasing to just under 15,000. In 2019 the voters slightly increased this majority (to over 16,000). In the

, the seat returned to the Liberal Democrats, with Adam Dance defeating the existing Conservative MP, Marcus Fysh, by over 12,000 votes.

Members of Parliament

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

Elections in the 2010s

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s

Elections in the 1980s

Elections in the 1970s

Elections in the 1960s

Elections in the 1950s

Election in the 1940s

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: John Fox-StrangwaysWestern Gazette, 4 Feb 1938 *Liberal: James Bateman *Labour:

Malcolm MacPherson Malcolm MacPherson (18 August 1904 – 24 May 1971) was a Scottish Labour politician. Biography Malcolm MacPherson was born on the Isle of May, in the Firth of Forth, where his father, John McPherson, was one of the lighthouse keepers. Malc ...

Elections in the 1930s

Elections in the 1920s

Elections in the 1910s

Notes

References

External links

Yeovil UK Parliament constituency
(boundaries April 1997 – April 2010) at ''MapIt UK''

(boundaries April 2010 – May 2024) at ''MapIt UK''

(boundaries from June 2024) at ''MapIt UK'' {{Coord, 50.9, N, 2.81, W, source:wikidata, display=title Parliamentary constituencies in Somerset Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1918 Yeovil