Arundel and South Downs
County constituency for the House of Commons
Boundary of Arundel and South Downs in West Sussex
Location of West Sussex within England
County	West Sussex
Population	97,267 (2011 census)[1]
Electorate	76,697 (December 2010)[2]
Major settlements	Arundel, Hassocks, Petworth, Pulborough and Steyning
Current constituency
Created	1997
Member of Parliament	None
Seats	One
Created from	Arundel and Horsham

Arundel and South Downs (/ˈærʊndəl/) is a constituency^{[n 1]} in West Sussex created in 1997 and represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament.^{[n 2]}

Constituency profile

This is a mostly rural constituency including the town of Arundel and villages within the South Downs national park boundaries or encircled by the park; the largest of which are Hassocks, Hurstpierpoint, Petworth, Pulborough, Steyning and Storrington. Residents' incomes and house prices are significantly wealthier than the UK averages.^[3]

Boundaries

Map of boundaries 2010-2024

2010-2024: Following their review of parliamentary boundaries in West Sussex which Parliament approved in 2007, the Boundary Commission for England formed new constituencies. As created in 2010, the seat was constituted as follows:

• The Arun District wards of: Angmering, Arundel, Barnham, Findon, and Walberton
• The Chichester District wards of: Bury, Petworth, and Wisborough Green
• The Horsham District wards of: Bramber, Upper Beeding and Woodmancote, Chanctonbury, Chantry, Cowfold,Partridge Green, Shermanbury and West Grinstead, Henfield, Pulborough and Coldwaltham, and Steyning
• The Mid Sussex District wards of: Hassocks, and Hurstpierpoint and Downs

In their recommendations, the Boundary Commission for England mooted the name Chanctonbury after uninhabited Chanctonbury Ring, an ancient hill fort at its centre. This name was rejected during the local inquiry process at which the current name was chosen.^[4]

2024-present:

Map of boundaries from 2024

Further to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, enacted by the Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023, from the 2024 United Kingdom general election, the constituency was composed of the following wards (as they existed on 1 December 2020):

• The District of Arun wards of: Arundel & Walberton; Barnham; Felpham East (polling district BHOE).
• The District of Chichester wards of: Easebourne; Fernhurst; Fittleworth; Goodwood (polling districts GWBX, GWEA, GWED, GWSI and GWUP); Harting; Loxwood; Midhurst; Petworth.
• The District of Horsham wards of: Bramber, Upper Beeding & Woodmancote; Henfield; Pulborough, Coldwaltham & Amberley; Steyning & Ashurst; Storrington & Washington; West Chiltington, Thakeham & Ashington.^[5]

The electorate was reduced to bring it within the permitted range by transferring out the two District of Mid Sussex wards and the Horsham District ward of Cowfold, Shermanbury & West Grinstead to their respectively-named constituencies; the District of Arun ward of Angmering & Findon were transferred to Worthing West. To partly compensate, the constituency will be extended further northwards and westwards into the constituency/District of Chichester, gaining the town of Midhurst.

History

Results and EU referendum stance

The 2017 result saw the sixth Conservative win.

Second-place runners-up have been, listed in order, four times a Liberal Democrat, once the UKIP candidate and once the Labour candidate. In line with regional trends, the highest percentage of the vote among these was the Liberal Democrat in 2010, with 27.9% of the vote.

In June 2016, an estimated 50.3% of local adults voting in the EU membership referendum chose to remain in the European Union instead of to leave. This was defied in two January 2018 votes in Parliament by its MP, in line with his governing party's promise to adhere to the overall result of that referendum.^[6]

The 2015-2017 status was as the 8th safest of the Conservative Party's 331 seats by percentage of majority.^[7]

De-selection of incumbent seeking re-election in 2005

The incumbent Howard Flight MP had national media coverage in the run-up to the 2005 general election due to his deselection requested by the party leader for membership of Conservative Way Forward, lobbying for spending cuts to be more severe than set out in the small cuts in the 2005 manifesto. Flight hinted his preferred cuts would be as implemented by a Conservative government in his view. He had represented the constituency since its creation at the 1997 general election. Anne Marie Morris, Laura Sandys and Nick Herbert put themselves forward for nomination as replacement candidates. The chosen candidate, Nick Herbert, won the seat at the election.^[8] Morris and Sandys became MPs elsewhere in 2010.

Predecessor seats

The seat and its predecessors have in the 20th century been a Conservative Party stronghold save that the minor contributory Horsham seat to the area's electorate saw victory by 8.6% of the vote over the Labour Party in 1966, followed statistically by a next-most-marginal victory again with the Labour Party as runner-up, in 1950, of 14.4%.

Between 1974 and 1983, much of the South Downs area was part of the Shoreham constituency, with the town of Arundel remaining in the Arundel constituency.

Prior to 1974, the seat was largely part of the Arundel and Shoreham constituency.

Members of Parliament

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

Elections in the 2010s

General election 2019: Arundel and South Downs^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Andrew Griffith	35,566	57.9	4.5
	Liberal Democrats	Alison Bennett	13,045	21.2	13.3
	Labour	Bella Sankey	9,722	15.8	6.9
	Green	Isabel Thurston	2,519	4.1	0.1
	Independent	Robert Wheal	556	0.9	New
Majority			22,521	36.7	3.0
Turnout			61,408	75.1	0.7
Registered electors			81,726
	Conservative hold		Swing	8.9

General election 2017: Arundel and South Downs

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Nick Herbert	37,573	62.4	1.6
	Labour	Caroline Fife	13,690	22.7	11.5
	Liberal Democrats	Shweta Kapadia	4,783	7.9	0.7
	Green	Jo Prior	2,542	4.2	2.2
	UKIP	John Wallace	1,668	2.8	11.6
Majority			23,883	39.7	6.7
Turnout			60,256	75.8	2.7
Registered electors			79,478
	Conservative hold		Swing	5.0

General election 2015: Arundel and South Downs^[18]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Nick Herbert	34,331	60.8	3.0
	UKIP	Peter Grace	8,154	14.4	8.7
	Labour	Christopher Wellbelove	6,324	11.2	2.6
	Liberal Democrats	Shweta Kapadia	4,062	7.2	20.7
	Green	Isabel Thurston	3,606	6.4	New
Majority			26,177	46.4	16.5
Turnout			56,477	73.1	0.9
Registered electors			77,242
	Conservative hold		Swing	2.9