Hitchin
County constituency for theHouse of Commons
Boundaries since 2024
Boundary of Hitchin in the East of England
County	Hertfordshire
Electorate	72,112 (2023)[1]
Major settlements	Hitchin,Shefford,Stotfold,Arlesey
Current constituency
Created	2024
Member of Parliament	Alistair Strathern (Labour)
Seats	One
Created from	Hitchin and Harpenden,Mid Bedfordshire (part)
1885–1983
Seats	One
Created from	Hertfordshire
Replaced by	North Hertfordshire,Stevenage[2]
During its existence contributed to new seat(s) of	Hertford and Stevenage

Hitchin is aparliamentary constituency inHertfordshire andBedfordshire which returned oneMember of Parliament (MP) to theHouse of Commons of theParliament of the United Kingdom from1885 until it was abolished for the1983 general election.

Further to the completion of the2023 review of Westminster constituencies, the seat was re-established for the2024 general election,^[3] since when it has been held byAlistair Strathern of theLabour Party.

• The Sessional Divisions of Aldbury (except the parishes of Great Hadham and Little Hadham), Buntingford, Hitchin, Odsey, Stevenage, and Welwyn; and
• The parish of Braughing.^[4]

The constituency was established by theRedistribution of Seats Act 1885 (which followed on from theThird Reform Act) as one of four Divisions of the abolished three-member Parliamentary County ofHertfordshire, and was formally named as theNorthern or Hitchin Division of Hertfordshire. It included the towns/villages ofHitchin,Stevenage,Welwyn,Baldock andRoyston.

• The Urban Districts of Baldock, Hitchin, Royston, and Stevenage;
• The Rural Districts of Ashwell, Buntingford, Hitchin, and Welwyn; and
• The Rural District of Hertford parishes of Aston, Bennington, Datchworth, Sacombe, Walkern, and Watton-at-Stone.^[5]

Minor changes only to reflect local authority boundaries.

• The Urban Districts of Baldock, Hitchin, Letchworth, Royston, and Stevenage;
• The Rural Districts of Hitchin, and Welwyn; and
• Parts of the Rural Districts of Braughing and Hertford.^[6]

The constituency had included a part of theUrban District of Welwyn Garden City, which had been formed as a separate local authority in 1927, and this was now transferred toSt Albans.  Other nominal changes as a result of the reorganisation of local authorities.

• The Urban Districts of Baldock, Hitchin, Letchworth, Royston, and Stevenage;
• The Rural District of Hitchin;
• The Rural District of Braughing parishes of Anstey, Ardeley, Aspenden, Broadfield, Buckland, Buntingford, Cottered, Hormead, Meesden, Throcking, Westmilll, and Wyddiall; and
• The Rural District of Hertford parishes of Aston, Bennington, Datchworth, Sacombe, Walkern, and Watton-at-Stone.^[7]

The Rural District of Welwyn was transferred to St Albans.

• The Urban Districts of Baldock, Hitchin, Letchworth, Royston, and Stevenage; and
• The Rural District of Hitchin.^[6]

The part of the Rural District of Braughing was transferred to the new constituency ofEast Hertfordshire, and the part of the Rural District of Hertford was transferred toHertford.

• The Urban Districts of Baldock, Hitchin, Letchworth, and Royston; and
• The Rural District of Hitchin.^[6][8]

The Urban District of Stevenage formed the majority of the new County Constituency ofHertford and Stevenage.

The constituency was abolished for the1983 general election and was replaced by the new constituency ofNorth Hertfordshire, with the exception of a small part in the south-east which was included in the new constituency ofStevenage (Codicote andKnebworth).

Further to the2023 review of Westminster constituencies, which came into effect for the2024 general election, the composition of the re-established constituency was defined as follows (as they existed on 1 December 2020):

• TheDistrict of Central Bedfordshire wards ofArlesey;Shefford; andStotfold andLangford - transferred partly fromNorth East Bedfordshire and partly fromMid Bedfordshire.
• TheDistrict of North Hertfordshire wards of: Cadwell; Chesfield;Hitchin Bearton; Hitchin Highbury; Hitchin Oughton; Hitchin Priory; Hitchin Walsworth; Hitchwood, Offa and Hoo; and Kimpton - transferred from the abolished constituency ofHitchin and Harpenden.^[9]

Following local government boundary reviews in Central Bedfordshire^[10] and North Hertfordshire^[11] which came into effect in May 2023 and May 2024 respectively, the constituency now comprises the following from the2024 general election:

• The District of Central Bedfordshire wards or part wards of: Arlesey & Fairfield; Clifton, Henlow & Langfield; Meppershall & Shillington (Meppershall parish); Shefford; Stotfold.
• The District of North Hertfordshire wards or part wards of: Cadwell; Codicote & Kimpton (Kimpton parish); Graveley, St Ippolyts & Wymondley; Great Ashby; Hitchin Bearton; Hitchin Highbury; Hitchin Oughton; Hitchin Priory; Hitchin Walsworth; Hitchwood; Offa.^[12]

North Hertfordshire andStevenage prior to 1885

Notes:-

• ^a Dimsdale was a Baron of the Russian Empire
• ^b Cecil associated himself with the non-coalition wing of the Conservative Party, at some point in the 1918-1922 Parliament

Hitchin & Harpenden prior to 2024

General election 2024: Hitchin^[13][14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alistair Strathern[a]	23,067	44.8	+17.7
	Conservative	Bim Afolami[b]	14,958	28.5	–18.5
	Reform	Charles Bunker	6,760	12.9	N/A
	Liberal Democrats	Chris Lucas	4,913	9.4	–14.3
	Green	Will Lavin	2,631	5.0	+3.5
	CPA	Sid Cordle	181	0.3	–0.2
Majority			8,109	15.4	N/A
Turnout			52,696	69.4	–5.6
Registered electors			75,877
	Labourgain fromConservative		Swing	18.1

The Hitchin parliamentary constituency did not exist when the 2019 general election was held. The following is a projection of what the result of the 2019 general election might have looked like in the Hitchin parliamentary constituency if it had existed.

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 from 1939 and by the end of this year, the following candidates had been selected;

• Conservative:Arnold Wilson
• Labour:George Lindgren

General Election 1914–15:

Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;

• Unionist:Robert Cecil
• Liberal:

• List of parliamentary constituencies in Hertfordshire
• List of parliamentary constituencies in the East of England (region)

• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "H" (part 3)
• Hitchin UK Parliament constituency (boundaries from June 2024) atMapIt UK

51°57′N0°17′W / 51.95°N 0.28°W /51.95; -0.28

• Parliamentary constituencies in Hertfordshire
• Hitchin
• Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1885
• Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom disestablished in 1983
• Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 2024

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