Sea wall (British politics)

The Sea wall is a term used by psephologists to refer to battleground constituencies along the UK coastline. The sea wall is predominantly Conservative voting but is home to many marginal seats that are vulnerable to Labour according to opinion polls. Along with Red wall and Blue wall, the Sea wall overlaps both, and has been used in coverage for the 2024 general election. There are thought to be 108 such constituencies. In the 2019 general election Labour won just 24 of these seats.

Coastal constituencies in England and Wales are noted for deprivation. They are personified by tourism based economies, the cost of living crisis and poor connectivity. Coastal communities are known to have lower wages compared to people living and working inland. The availability of affordable housing has also been an issue.

Before the 2024 general election, the think tank Onward has called coastal areas “the forgotten battleground that could decide [this] election”.

Background
The term was used 2022 local elections when the Labour Party took majority control of Worthing Borough Council just five years after winning their first councillor in the district. Labour are considered to be competitive in Conservative areas on south coast like Plymouth, Bournemouth, Southampton and Portsmouth.

Research from the Fabian Society was reported on that Labour had unprecedented polling leads over the Conservatives. The "sea wall" is regarded by them as an important area for the 2024 general election. YouGov polling showed that 44% of voters in the sea wall said they would never consider voting Conservative.

Jaywick in Tendring District in Essex is the most deprived neighbourhood in England. The Clacton constituency was noted for being the only place to elect a UKIP MP in a general election. Since Brexit, Conservative support in coastal areas that voted Leave has been waning. On 3 June 2024, Nigel Farage took over Reform UK and announced his candidacy in Clacton.

Elections in the 2020s
Labour won the 2024 Blackpool South by-election with a large swing. Channel 4 has reported during the 2024 United Kingdom general election that the coastal towns in the sea wall will determine the election.