Hung Parliament in British Election

Date: February 28, 1974 • Location: London, United Kingdom

The British election ended in a hung parliament after the Liberal Party, under Jeremy Thorpe, achieved their highest ever number of votes.

A general election was held in the United Kingdom on Thursday 28 February 1974. The Labour Party, led by former Prime Minister Harold Wilson, gained seats, and became the largest party, but was short of an overall majority. The governing Conservative Party, led by Prime Minister Edward Heath, lost seats, even though it polled a higher vote share than Labour. This resulted in the first hung parliament since 1929.