(1921–72)
The 1938 Northern Ireland general election was held on 9 February 1938. Like all previous elections to the Parliament of Northern Ireland , it produced a large majority for the Ulster Unionist Party , who won three-quarters of the seats.
The newly-formed Ulster Progressive Unionist Association came second in vote share, but won no seats. 21 MPs were elected unopposed (40%), the vast majority of whom were Ulster Unionists.
Results ↓ 39 8 2 3 UUP Nationalist IU Oth
1938 Northern Ireland general election Party Candidates Votes Stood Elected Gained Unseated Net % of total % No. Net % Ulster Unionist 43 39 3 0 +3 75.0 56.8 187,684 +13.3 Progressive Unionist 10 0 0 0 0 — 12.4 41,028 N/A Ind. Unionist Party 6 1 1 0 +1 1.9 8.6 28,459 N/A Ind. Unionist 5 2 1 2 -1 3.8 6.8 22,354 -14.5 NI Labour 7 1 1 2 -1 1.9 5.7 18,775 -2.8 Nationalist 9 8 0 1 -1 15.4 4.9 16,167 -8.3 Independent 3 0 0 0 0 — 2.2 7,482 +2.0 Independent Labour 1 1 1 0 +1 1.9 1.7 5,480 N/A Ind. Progressive Unionist 1 0 0 0 0 — 0.9 2,926 N/A
Electorate: 825,101 (464,860 in contested seats); Turnout: 71.1% (330,355).
Seat changes Votes summary Popular vote Ulster Unionist
56.81% Progressive Unionist
12.42% Ind. Unionist Association
8.61% Ind. Unionist
6.77% Labour
5.68% Nationalist Party
4.89% Independent
2.26% Independent Labour
1.66% Ind. Progressive Unionist
0.89%
Seats summary Parliamentary seats Ulster Unionist
75.00% Nationalist Party
15.38% Ind. Unionist
3.85% Labour
1.92% Ind. Unionist Association
1.92% Independent Labour
1.92%
Contested seats Only 31 of the 52 seats (60%) were actually contested.
1938 Northern Ireland general election (contested seats) Party Popular vote Candidates Votes % Stood Elected % Ulster Unionist 187,684 56.8 29 25 80.6 Progressive Unionist 41,028 12.4 10 0 — Ind. Unionist Party 28,459 8.6 6 1 3.2 Ind. Unionist 22,354 6.8 5 2 6.5 Labour 18,775 5.7 6 0 — Nationalist 16,167 4.9 3 2 6.5 Independent 7,482 2.2 3 0 — Ind. Labour 5,480 1.7 1 1 3.2 Ind. Progressive Unionist 2,926 0.9 1 0 — Total 330,355 71.1 64 31 —
Uncontested seats In 21 of the 52 seats (40%), only one candidate stood and they were elected unopposed without any votes cast. The vast majority of the MPs elected without a contest were Ulster Unionists.
1938 Northern Ireland general election (uncontested seats) Party Popular vote Candidates Votes % Stood Elected % Ulster Unionist Unopposed 14 14 66.7 Nationalist Unopposed 6 6 28.6 Labour Unopposed 1 1 4.8 Total 21 21 100
References Northern Ireland Parliamentary Election Results Archived 16 November 2017 at the Wayback Machine ^ Includes 14 members elected unopposed. ^ Includes 6 members elected unopposed. ^ The only Labour MP was elected unopposed.