United Kingdom general election, 1945

The United Kingdom General Election of 1945 held on 5 July 1945 but not counted and declared until 26 July1945 (due to the time it took to transport the votes of those serving overseas) was one of the most significant general elections of the 20th century.

Reason for Labour victory

With the Second World War coming to an end in Europe, King George VI called a general election. What followed was perhaps one of the greatest swings of public confidence of the 20th century. Labour won overwhelming support while 'Churchill... was both surprised and stunned' by the crushing defeat suffered by the conservatives. How this swing of opinion came about is not only due the failings of the conservative party but also to Labour's manifesto of social reform.

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With the war drawing to an end by 1945, the national government sought to call an election in a bid to return to a two party system. As Churchill's personal popularity remained high, Conservatives were confident of victory and based much of their election campaign on this, rather than propose new programs. Meanwhile, Labour offered a new comprehensive welfare policy, reflecting a general consensus that social improvements were needed. The Conservatives were not willing to make the same concessions that Labour proposed, and hence appeared disjointed with public support.

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In addition to the Conservative poor election strategy, Churchill went so far as to accuse Attlee of seeking to behave as a dictator, in spite of Attlee's service in Churchill's war cabinet. Another blow to the Conservative campaign was the memory of the 1930s policy of appeasement, which had been conducted by Churchill's Conservative predecessor, Neville Chamberlain. This policy led many to blame the Conservatives for the outbreak of the war, damanging its re-election efforts.

Related Topics:
1930s - Appeasement - Neville Chamberlain

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The single greatest factor in Labour's dramatic win appeared to be the policy of social reform. In one opinion poll, 41 percent of respondents considered housing to be the single most important issue that faced the country. The welfare state, based on the Beveridge report, proposed a dramatic turn in British social policy, with provisions for nationalized health care, expanded education, national insurance and a new housing policy.

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