Tag: secret voting

Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Constituencies, Elections, Electoral Reform, Victorian

The 1872 Secret Ballot and Multiple Member Seats

In this post about the introduction of the ballot in UK elections, based on a seminar talk (click here to view), Dr Philip Salmon examines some of the problems secret voting initially caused and their unintended consequences. The Ballot Act of 1872 sits alongside the three major Reform Acts of the 19th century (and various Corrupt Practices Acts) in helping to transform British elections into … Continue reading The 1872 Secret Ballot and Multiple Member Seats

Philip SalmonLeave a comment
19th Century history, Elections, Electoral Reform, Victorian, Victorian Commons

‘Damn the secret ballot’: the UK’s public voting system before 1872

Today (18 July) marks another anniversary of the 1872 Secret Ballot Act, a topic we examined in more detail in a seminar back in 2022 (click here to view). But secret voting is now so engrained in our political culture that it’s easy to lose sight of the way the public voting system that served Britain for so many centuries worked. We’ve touched on public … Continue reading ‘Damn the secret ballot’: the UK’s public voting system before 1872

Philip Salmon1 Comment
Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Elections, Electoral Reform, Social history, Victorian, Women and Parliament

Ballot boxes, bills and unions: Harriet Grote (1792-1878) and the public campaign for the ballot, 1832-9

In part six of his article series on Harriet Grote, Dr Martin Spychal, research fellow in our House of Commons 1832-68 project, explores the role of Harriet Grote (1792-1878) in the popular and parliamentary campaign for the ballot during the 1830s. On 18 July 2022 we marked the anniversary of the Ballot Act with an online event, in collaboration with the Parliamentary Archives. This event was recorded … Continue reading Ballot boxes, bills and unions: Harriet Grote (1792-1878) and the public campaign for the ballot, 1832-9

Martin Spychal2 Comments