1885 United Kingdom general election

The 1885 United Kingdom general election was held from 24 November to 18 December 1885. The first general election after an extension of the franchise and redistribution of seats, it saw the Liberals lose their majority.

The election saw the Liberals, led by William Gladstone, win the most seats, but not an overall majority, so a minority government was necessary. The Irish Nationalists held the balance of power between the Liberals and the Conservatives who sat with a large number of allied Unionist MPs (their name referred to their support for the Union of Great Britain and Ireland). The pressure of minority government status exacerbated divisions within the Liberals over Irish Home Rule. This led to a Liberal split that caused another general election the following year.

The 1885 election saw the first socialist party participate, with the Social Democratic Federation led by H. M. Hyndman standing three candidates. None were elected.

• List of MPs elected in the 1885 United Kingdom general election
• Parliamentary franchise in the United Kingdom 1885–1918
• Representation of the People Act 1884
• Redistribution of Seats Act 1885
• 1885 United Kingdom general election in Ireland
• 1885 United Kingdom general election in Scotland
• Hawarden Kite, Gladstone announces for Home Rule and wins over the Irish

• Craig, F. W. S. (1989), British Electoral Facts: 1832–1987, Dartmouth: Gower, ISBN 0900178302
• Rallings, Colin; Thrasher, Michael, eds. (2000), British Electoral Facts 1832–1999, Ashgate Publishing Ltd

• Roberts, Matthew. "Election Cartoons and Political Communication In Victorian England.' Cultural & Social History (2013) 10#3 pp 369–395, covers 1860 to 1890.
• Walker, Brian (2005), "The 1885 and 1886 General Elections in Ireland", History Ireland, 13 (6): 36–40, JSTOR 27725365

• Spartacus: Political Parties and Election Results
• United Kingdom election results—summary results 1885–1979 Archived 30 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine