See main article: 1931 United Kingdom general election.
| Election Name: | 1931 United Kingdom general election |
| Country: | Scotland |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1929 United Kingdom general election |
| Previous Year: | 1929 |
| Previous Mps: | List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1929 |
| Next Election: | 1935 United Kingdom general election |
| Next Year: | 1935 |
| Next Mps: | List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1935 |
| Elected Mps: | List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1931 |
| Election Date: | 27 October 1931 |
| Leader1: | Stanley Baldwin |
| Leader Since1: | 23 October 1922 |
| Party1: | Unionist Party (Scotland) |
| Seats Before1: | 20 |
| Seats1: | 50 |
| Seat Change1: | 28 |
| Popular Vote1: | 1,056,768 |
| Percentage1: | 49.5% |
| Swing1: | 13.6% |
| Leader2: | Herbert Samuel |
| Leader Since2: | October 1931 |
| Party2: | Liberal Party (UK) |
| Seats Before2: | 13 |
| Seats2: | 8 |
| Seat Change2: | 6 |
| Popular Vote2: | 205,384 |
| Percentage2: | 8.6% |
| Swing2: | 9.5% |
| Leader4: | Sir John Simon |
| Leader Since4: | 5 October 1931 |
| Party4: | National Liberal Party (UK, 1931) |
| Seats Before4: | New party |
| Seats4: | 8 |
| Seat Change4: | 8 |
| Popular Vote4: | 101,430 |
| Percentage4: | 4.9% |
| Swing4: | New party |
| Leader5: | Arthur Henderson |
| Leader Since5: | 1 September 1931 |
| Party5: | Scottish Labour Party |
| Last Election5: | 36 seats |
| Seats5: | 7 |
| Seat Change5: | 29 |
| Popular Vote5: | 696,248 |
| Percentage5: | 32.6% |
| Swing5: | 9.7% |
A general election was held in the United Kingdom on Tuesday, 27 October 1931. Of the 74 seats representing Scotland, 71 seats represented burgh and county constituencies contested under the First-Past-The-Post electoral system, and 3 represented the Combined Scottish Universities multi-member University constituency.
The election saw massive gains for the Unionists across the country, with the party winning nearly 70% of all Scottish seats. The parties forming the National Government together won 64% of the vote, and 86% of the seats. In contrast the Labour Party, which had been the largest party in Scotland following the 1929 general election (where it had won 42% of the Scottish vote), was relegated into fourth place within just two years.
Following the election, with Labour appearing to teeter on the edge of the electoral abyss in Scotland, the Independent Labour Party increasingly moved apart from Labour, ultimately dissociating from the party in March 1932. The ILP had dominated the Labour movement in Scotland since 1918, dominating community based activism, and essentially forming the Labour Party in Scotland. This had ultimately served to undermine the organisational growth of the Labour Party in Scotland.[1]
| Party | Seats | Seats change | Votes | % | % Change | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Government (Total) | 64 | 1,385,385 | 64.0 | ||||
| Unionist | 48 | 28 | 1,056,768 | 49.5 | 13.6 | ||
| National Liberal & Conservative | 8 | New | 101,430 | 4.9 | New | ||
| Liberal | 7 | 6 | 205,384 | 8.6 | 9.5 | ||
| National Labour | 1 | New | 21,803 | 1.0 | New | ||
| Labour Party | 7 | 29 | 696,248 | 32.6 | 9.7 | ||
| Communist | 0 | 35,618 | 1.4 | 0.3 | |||
| National Party of Scotland | 0 | 20,954 | 1.0 | 0.8 | |||
| New Party | 0 | New | 3,895 | 0.2 | New | ||
| Other | 0 | 32,229 | 0.8 | ||||
| Total | 71 | 2,174,329 | 100 | ||||