Election result wherein a party or candidate wins by a large margin
Alandslide victory is anelection result in which the winningcandidate orparty achieves a decisive victory by an overwhelming margin, securing a very large majority of votes or seats far beyond the typical competitive outcome.[1][2] The term became popular in the 1800s to describe a victory in which the opposition is "buried",[1] similar to the way in which a geologicallandslide buries whatever is in its path. A landslide victory for one party is often accompanied by anelectoral wipeout for the opposition, as the overwhelming support for the winning side inflicts a decisive loss on its rivals. What qualifies as a landslide victory can vary depending on the type of electoral system, as the term does not entail a precise, technical, or universally agreed-upon measurement. Instead, it is used informally in everyday language, making it subject to interpretation. Even within a singleelectoral system, there is no consensus on the exact margin that constitutes a landslide victory.[1]
A landslide victory implies a powerful expression ofpopular will and a ringing endorsement by theelectorate for the winner’spolitical platform. A landslide can be viewed by a winning candidate or party as amandate or a tacit authorization from the public to implement their proposedpolicies and pursue theiragenda with confidence. Emboldened by the result, the winner may undertake ambitiousreforms or significant policy shifts to reflect the electorate’s desire for meaningful change.[3]
A combination of factors, includingcharismatic leadership, a favorable shift in public sentiment driven by dissatisfaction with or support for thestatus quo, strategicelectoral campaigning and a positivemedia portrayal, can create the conditions necessary for a landslide victory. A landslide may fundamentally reshape thepolitical landscape of a country; one example of this phenomenon isFranklin D. Roosevelt's election as US president in 1932.[4] In a post-landslide scenario, a winning party can sometimes implement its policies with little resistance, while its severely weakened opposition may struggle to perform essentialchecks and balances.
2021 Western Australian state election –Mark McGowan led theLabor Party to win 53 out of the 59 seats in the lower house. The Labor Party had a primary vote of 59.92% and a two-party-preferred vote of 69.68%. TheNational Party won 4 seats and theLiberal Party won 2 seats, making the National Party the official opposition, the first time they had held this status since the 1940s. To date, the election is the most decisive result at any Australian state or federal election since Federation, in terms of both percentage of lower house seats controlled by the governing party (89.8%) and two-party preferred margin.[7][8]
In a Canadian federal election, a landslide victory occurs when a political party gains a significant majority of theHouse of Commons of Canada.
Landslide victories may also occur during provincial elections, and territorial elections inYukon. Landslide victories are not possible for territorial elections in theNorthwest Territories, andNunavut, as its members are elected without reference to political parties, operating as aconsensus government.
The following Canadian federal elections resulted in landslide victories:[9]
1917 – The Conservatives, led byRobert Borden, won 153 seats (an increase of 21) and gained a majority of 14, while the Liberals, led byWilfrid Laurier, won just 82 (a decrease of 3).
1935 – The Liberals, led byWilliam Lyon Mackenzie King, won 171 seats (an increase of 34) and gained a majority of 50, while the Conservatives, led byR. B. Bennett, won just 39 (a decrease of 98).
1940 – The Liberals, led by William Lyon Mackenzie King, won 179 seats (an increase of 6) and gained a majority of 56 seats whilethe Progressive Conservatives, led byRobert James Manion, won just 39 (unchanged from their previous share).
1949 – The Liberals, led byLouis St. Laurent, won 191 seats (an increase of 73) and gained a majority of 59, while the Progressive Conservatives, led byGeorge A. Drew, won just 41 (a decrease of 25).
A map of the vote by province in 1958 shows the scale of the Progressive Conservatives' landslide victory.
1958 – The Progressive Conservatives, led byJohn Diefenbaker, won 208 seats (an increase of 96) and gained a majority of 75, while the Liberals, led byLester B. Pearson, won just 48 (a decrease of 57).
1968 – The Liberals, lead byPierre Trudeau, won 155 seats (an increase of 26) and gained a majority of 21, while the Progressive Conservatives, lead byRobert Stanfield won just 72 (a decrease of 22).
A map of the vote by province in 1984 shows the scale of the Progressive Conservatives' landslide victory.
1984 – The Progressive Conservatives, led byBrian Mulroney, won 211 seats (an increase of 111) and gained a majority of 69, while the Liberals, led byJohn Turner, won just 40 (a decrease of 95). Mulroney is the only prime minister to have won a majority of seats in every single province.
1993 – The Liberals, led byJean Chrétien, won 177 seats (an increase of 96) and gained a majority of 29, while theBloc Québecois, led byLucien Bouchard, which ran only in Quebec, won 54 (an increase of 54). The ruling Progressive Conservatives, led byKim Campbell, won just 2 (a decrease of 154).
2011 –The Conservatives, led byStephen Harper, won 166 seats (an increase of 23) and gained a majority of 11, while theNDP, led byJack Layton, a perennial 3rd party finished second with 103 (an increase of 67). The Liberals, led byMichael Ignatieff, won just 34 (a decrease of 43).
2015 – The Liberals, led byJustin Trudeau, won 184 seats (an increase of 150) and gained a majority of 14, while the Conservatives, led by Stephen Harper, won just 99 (a decrease of 60).
Until 1993, New Zealand used the traditionalfirst-past-the-post system as in the U.K. to determine representation in itsParliament. Thus, landslide elections at that time were defined in an identical fashion, i.e. where one party got an overwhelming majority of the seats. Since 1996, New Zealand has used themixed member proportional system as in Germany, making landslides much less likely.[11]
2016 – The Human Rights Protection Party, led by Tuilaʻepa Saʻilele Malielegaoi, won by a landslide victory, winning 35 of the 49 seats in theLegislative Assembly, gaining six seats. The main opposition party, theTautua Samoa Party (led byPalusalue Faʻapo II) only won two seats, losing 11 seats. Independents won 13 seats.[14]
In UK general elections, a landslide victory involves winning a largemajority in parliament and often goes with a largeswing from one party to another as well. Landslide victories have usually occurred after a long period of government from one particular party and a change in the popular mood.[15]
Large majorities, however, are not always the advantage they appear to be. Anthony Seldon gives a number of examples of the infighting that can arise from large majorities. He claims that a "sweet spot" parliamentary majority of 35-50 seats is enough to protect from by-elections and still comfortably pass legislation.[16]
Notable landslide election results
1906 –Henry Campbell-Bannerman led hisLiberal Party to victory overArthur Balfour's Conservative Party who lost more than half their seats, including his own seat inManchester East, as a result of the large national swing to the Liberal Party (The 5.4% swing from the Conservatives to Liberals was at the time the highest ever achieved). The Liberal Party won 397 seats (an increase of 214) while the Conservative Party were left with 156 seats (a decrease of 246).[17][18]
1945 –Clement Attlee led the Labour Party to victory overWinston Churchill's Conservative Party, a 12.0% swing from the Conservatives to Labour. Labour won 393 seats (an increase of 239) while the Conservative Party were left with 197 (a decrease of 190).[19]
1997 –Tony Blair led the Labour Party to win a first landslide victory with 418 seats (an increase of 146) and gained an overall majority of 179 while the Conservative Party led byJohn Major won 165 seats (a decrease of 178). The swing from the Conservatives to Labour was 10.2% and was the second biggest general election victory of the 20th Century after 1931.[20]
2001 – Tony Blair led the Labour Party to win a second landslide victory with 412 seats (a decrease of 6) and retained an overall majority of 167 while the Conservative Party led byWilliam Hague won 166 seats (an increase of 1), making Tony Blair the first Labour Prime Minister to serve two consecutive full terms in office.[21]
2019 –Boris Johnson led the Conservative Party to win a landslide victory (his second term in office) with 365 seats (an increase of 48, the party's highest seat countsince 1987) and a majority of 80 seats, while the Labour Party led byJeremy Corbyn won 202 seats (a decrease of 60, the party's worst resultsince 1935). The election led to 54 Labour seats changing to Conservative predominantly in the Midlands and Northern England – some of which had been held by Labour since the first half of the 20th century.[22]
2024 –Keir Starmer led the Labour Party to win a landslide victory with 411 seats (an increase of 211, the party's highest seat countsince 2001) and a majority of 172 seats, while the Conservative Party led byRishi Sunak won 121 seats (a decrease of 251, the party's worst ever result, exceeding the previous worstdefeat of 1906.[23])
The map of the Electoral College in1936 shows the scale ofFranklin D. Roosevelt's landslide victory.
1936 –Franklin D. Roosevelt (D) received 523 (98.5%) of the electoral votes—the largest share since 1820 and the largest in a non-unanimous election—whileAlf Landon (R) received only 8 (1.5%). Additionally, Roosevelt received 60.8% of the popular vote.
1964 –Lyndon B. Johnson (D) received 486 (90.3%) of the electoral votes whileBarry Goldwater (R) received only 52 (9.7%). Additionally, Johnson received 61.1% of the popular vote.
The map of the Electoral College in1972 shows the scale ofRichard Nixon's landslide victory.
The map of the Electoral College in1984 shows the scale ofRonald Reagan's landslide victory.
1984 –Ronald Reagan (R) received 525 (97.6%) of the electoral votes whileWalter Mondale (D) received only 13 (2.4%). Additionally, Reagan received 58.8% of the popular vote.
^James H Fowler; Oleg Smirnov (2009),Mandates, Parties, and Voters: How Elections Shape the Future, p. 15
^Jason D. Mycoff; Joseph August Pika (2008),Confrontation and Compromise: Presidential and Congressional Leadership, 2001-2006, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, p. 11
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