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The constituency has at each election since a 1937 by-election elected the Labour Party candidate. Since then the smallest majority was 10.4% of the vote, in a by-election in 1969, on a very low turnout.
The MP since 1983, Jeremy Corbyn, had his smallest majority (15.3%) in 1983 and his largest (60.5%) in 2017. In the eight elections during Corbyn's tenure, the Conservatives have finished in second place four times while the Liberal Democrats have also been runners up on four occasions. The 2015 result made the seat the 26th safest of Labour's 232 seats by percentage of majority.
At the next redistribution of seats by the Representation of the People Act 1948 the constituency was again defined as Tollington, Tufnell and Upper Holloway wards of the Metropolitan Borough of Islington, with boundaries as they existed at the end of 1947.
1974–1983
In 1965 local government in Greater London was reorganised, with the formation of London boroughs. The changes were reflected in parliamentary boundaries from 1974. The London Borough of Islington was divided into three constituencies. Islington North was defined as comprising seven wards: Highview, Hillmarton, Hillrise, Junction, Parkway, St. George's and Station.
1983–1997
In 1983 the parliamentary representation of Islington was reduced to two constituencies. The new, enlarged, Islington North was formed from ten wards of the borough as they existed in February 1983. These were Gillespie, Highbury, Highview, Hillrise, Junction, Mildmay, Quadrant, St. George's, Sussex and Tollington wards.
1997–2010
In 1997 there were only slight boundary changes, with the constituency defined as the same ten wards with their boundaries as they existed on 1 June 1994.
The constituency now comprises eight electoral wards:
Finsbury Park, Highbury East, Highbury West, Hillrise, Junction, Mildmay, St. George's and Tollington.
These boundaries have been considerably changed since 1970, when Islington returned three MPs and shared another with Hackney. This reflects the depopulation of central London on a lowering of adult occupancy of households and the local authority has replaced tower blocks. The core of the constituency was the area north of Seven Sisters Road and Camden Road. At 0.735 square kilometres (0.284 sq mi), it is the smallest UK Parliamentary constituency. At the Fifth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies begun in 2012 the seat was approximately 1,300 electors below the electoral quota and the highest concentration of elector density nationally. The criteria of successive reviews emphasise equal electorates as well as restricting seats to one or, if unavoidable, two local authority areas.
Michael O'Halloran, elected Labour MP for Islington North in 1969, was the subject of an investigation in the early 1970s by The Sunday Times newspaper. They highlighted his background with a local building company and the local Irish community and queried the tactics of his supporters during his selection as candidate.
O'Halloran joined the SDP in September 1981, as did both of the other Islington MPs. However the Boundary Commission cut the number of constituencies in Islington from three to two. O'Halloran sought selection as the SDP candidate for the revised Islington North constituency but the local SDP association selected John Grant, then SDP (elected as Labour) MP for Islington Central, as its official candidate. In February 1983, O'Halloran resigned his membership of the SDP and sat in Parliament as an "Independent Labour" member, supporting the Parliamentary Labour Party. Despite this, he failed to regain the Labour Party nomination for the 1983 General Election and he was defeated by the new Labour candidate, Jeremy Corbyn, coming fourth with 11.1% of the vote.
Corbyn defeated Paul Boateng for the Labour Party selection. Boateng subsequently became the first black cabinet minister in the UK.
Redistribution Of Seats Act, 1885. Sixth Schedule. Divisions Of Boroughs. Number, Names, Contents, And Boundaries Of Divisions.
^ Youngs, Frederic A, Jr. (1979). Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Vol.I: Southern England. London: Royal Historical Society. pp. 743, 746, 749. ISBN0-901050-67-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
Representation Of The People Act 1918. Ninth Schedule. Redistribution Of Seats.
Representation Of The People Act 1948, First Schedule. Parliamentary Constituencies.
The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1970 (S.I. 1970/1674)
The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1983 (S.I. 1983/417)
Boundary of Islington North in Greater London
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