UK General Election 1987 - The Alliance Unveils Campaign Battlebus

The Alliance won 25.4% of the national vote in the 1983 general election, compared to Labour's 27.6%. Only 23 Alliance Members of Parliament (MPs) were elected, compared to Labour's 209. The SDP came second in many constituencies, though the bulk of Labour's defectors to the SDP in 1981 lost their seats, but Britain's first past the post electoral system meant that this success did not translate into parliamentary seats. Both the SDP and the Liberal party were committed to proportional representation, under which system they would have had a more accurate representation in the House of Commons.

However, the alliance failed to maintain momentum. In the 1987 general election, the share of the vote for each party fell slightly; the Liberals won 17 seats (the same as in 1983), while the SDP won five (one fewer than four years previously).

By 1987, relations had become fraught. David Steel proposed a merger of the two parties in following the 1987 general election. The majority of both parties agreed, and a merger was effected early in 1988.

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