Tonbridge (UK Parliament constituency)

Tonbridge is a parliamentary constituency in Kent, centred on the town of Tonbridge. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

The constituency was created for the 1918 general election, replacing the previous Tunbridge constituency. It was abolished for the February 1974 general election, when it was replaced by the new Tonbridge and Malling constituency.

Following the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the seat was re-established and was first contested in the 2024 general election, formed primarily from the previous and largely overlapping constituency of Tonbridge and Malling.

Boundaries
1918–1950: The Borough of Royal Tunbridge Wells, the Urban Districts of Tonbridge and Southborough, and Tonbridge Rural District.

1950–1974: As 1918 but with redrawn boundaries.

Constituency was abolished prior to the February 1974 election. After half a century constituency was re-established as a result of 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies for 2024 election.

2024–present: The District of Sevenoaks wards of: Ash and New Ash Green; Cowden and Hever; Edenbridge North and East; Edenbridge South and West; Hartley and Hodsoll Street; Leigh and Chiddingstone Causeway; Penshurst, Fordcombe and Chiddingstone. And the Borough of Tonbridge and Malling wards of: Birling, Leybourne & Ryarsh (part); Borough Green & Platt; Bourne; Cage Green & Angel; East and West Peckham, Mereworth & Wateringbury; East Malling, West Malling & Offham (small part); Higham; Hildenborough; Judd; Pilgrims with Ightham; Trench; Vauxhall.

Reformed constituency comprised the bulk of the preceding Tonbridge and Malling seat (excluding East and West Malling), plus an additional two District of Sevenoaks wards to the north - Ash and New Ash Green, and Hartley and Hodsoll Street, from the constituencies of Sevenoaks and Dartford respectively.

Constituency profile
The seat includes the commuter town of Tonbridge and its hinterland to the north, plus the smaller town of Edenbridge further west. Electoral Calculus characterises this area as "Strong Right", with right-wing economic and social views, high home ownership levels and strong support for Brexit.

MPs 1918-1974
Tunbridge prior to 1918

MPs since 2024
Tonbridge and Malling prior to 2024

Elections in the 1930s
General Election 1939–40:

Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the Autumn of 1939, the following candidates had been selected;
 * Conservative: Adrian Baillie
 * Labour: R. E. L. Bowyer
 * Liberal: Richard Matthews
 * British Union: E J Crawford