Voter power in Stretford & Urmston

0.175

Constituency marginality

Very safe

In Stretford & Urmston, one person does not really have one vote, they have the equivalent of 0.175 votes.

The power of voters in this constituency is based on the probability of the seat changing hands and its size.

While you might think that every vote counts equally, where you live in the UK has a huge effect on your power to influence the election.

How does Stretford & Urmston compare?

The average UK voter has 1.75x more voting power than voters in Stretford & Urmston.

Average UK voter power

0.305

The average UK voter only has the power of 0.305 votes. This is because most of us live in safe seats, where the outcome is pretty much certain regardless of how we vote.

Stretford & Urmston ranks #359 out of 650 constituencies in the Voter Power Index.

UK constituency marginality

We can be almost certain that 60% of seats will NOT change hands in the general election (very safe or ultra safe seats).

Further information

Marginality

The more times a seat changes hands, the more marginal it is deemed to be.

  • 1997 Lab
  • 2001 Lab
  • 2005 Lab
  • 2010 Lab

Constituency size

-4.42%

This constituency is smaller than average, which means a voter here is more likely to affect the national result.

Number of voters: 66,634

Average constituency: 69,718

2010 election data

51% of votes discarded

51.40% of those who voted in Stretford & Urmston in 2010 did not vote for the winning candidate. These votes count for nothing in the First Past the Post system.

2010 General Election result

2010 General Election result in Stretford & Urmston

Winner takes all

2010 General Election result in Stretford & Urmston

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The Voter Power Index is based on research by NEF (the New Economics Foundation)

If the UK had a proportional voting system:

  • We would no longer have safe seats
  • The power of votes would be much more equal
  • All areas of the UK would have equal power to decide the outcome of the election
  • Politicians would not be able to win an election by tailoring all their policies to a narrow section of the population
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