Constituency profile

Christchurch

South West · County constituency

Sir Christopher Chope MP
Sitting MP

Sir Christopher Chope

Conservative

First elected May 1997

Current PollCheck projection

Region & type
South West
County constituency
Last 5 GE winners
CCCCC
Conservative 5/5
EU referendum 2016
60.0% Leave
UK average 51.9%; +8.1pp above mean
Current outlook
Reform UK +5.0pp
Vulnerability score 8/10 (Conservative projected to lose)
SouthernStrong Leave area

About the Christchurch constituency

Christchurch is a county constituency in the South West, spanning parts of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Dorset and neighbouring councils. The sitting MP is Sir Christopher Chope (Conservative), first elected in May 1997.

At the 2024 general election, the Conservatives won Christchurch with 35.8% of the vote, ahead of the Liberal Democrats on 20.0%, a majority of 7,455 votes. Turnout was 66.6%.

If a general election were held today, PollCheck's projection at the current seven-poll average has Reform UK on 34.1% and the Conservatives on 29.1% in Christchurch, a margin of 5.0 points, a projected change from the Conservatives since 2024. The projection updates automatically as new polls are added.

Demographically, Christchurch is a strongly Leave-voting area (an estimated 60.0% voted Leave in 2016). About 29.5% of residents hold a degree, 76.9% of homes are owner-occupied, and the seat has a median age of about 54 (2021 Census).

Across the most recent general elections on record here, the seat has been won by the Conservatives each time.

Who lives in Christchurch? Constituency demographics

From the 2021 Census and 2016 EU referendum estimates. Constituency-level data on 2024 boundaries.

Leave vote 2016
60.0%
UK average ~52%
Degree or above
29.5%
UK average ~34%
No qualifications
17.6%
UK average ~18%
Owner-occupied
76.9%
UK average ~63%
Renting (social + private)
22.3%
UK average ~36%
Median age
54.2
UK median ~40
Age 65+
39.9%
UK average ~19%
Age 18-34
18.9%
UK average ~28%

How did Christchurch vote in 2024 and how would it vote now?

2024 vote shares from the HoC Library. Current projection is at the 7-poll average.

2024 general election

Con hold · majority 7,455 votes (15.8pp) · turnout 66.6%

Current projection

If a general election were held today, at current poll average

Map of Christchurch

Switch between ward-level 2024 election winners and a demographic view. Ward winners are Britain Elects' / New Statesman modelled estimates with an average ~4pp margin of error per ward. The demographic view splits the seat into small neighbourhoods (around 1,500 residents each, from the 2021 Census). Hover any area for detail.

Council layer (not Westminster)

Christchurch within Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset

Christchurch crosses multiple council boundaries: Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (56%), Dorset (44%). English councils rotate their election cycles and none of the constituent councils were due to vote in 2026, so the figures below show the most recent ward result available for each ward.

Council overlap

CouncilShare of seat
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
31 LSOAs
56%
Dorset
24 LSOAs
44%

Most recent council ward results

Latest council winner per ward. Where the council held a May 2026 election, those results are shown; otherwise we show the most recent available ward result (via DCLEAPIL, 2014-2024), or, where the seat was uncontested at the last election, the current sitting councillor from OpenCouncilData. The "Shift since GE2024" column is only computed for May 2026 results - earlier council votes pre-date the GE, so no directional shift is shown.

Ward GE2024 winner Latest council winner Shift since GE2024 Turnout

Projection trajectory

PollCheck's projection for Christchurch at each of the last 60 GB polls. Hover the chart for the underlying poll details.

Who has won Christchurch at past general elections?

2024 result is on current boundaries. The 2019 row is the UK Parliament's notional recalculation onto the 2024 boundaries (directly comparable to 2024). The 2010, 2015 and 2017 rows are on the boundaries in force at the time and aren't directly comparable.

Year Result MP Lab Con LD Right (Ref/UKIP) Green Other Majority Turnout
2010Con holdChristopher Chope9.8%56.4%25.3%8.5% UKIP--15,41071.8%
2015Con holdChristopher Chope9.5%58.1%6.6%21.5% UKIP4.3%-18,22471.7%-0.1
2017Con holdChristopher Chope19.9%69.6%7.9%-2.6%-25,17172.0%+0.3
2019notionalConservative winnerChristopher Chope 2019 MP, pre-review boundary12.9%65.6%17.4%-4.2%-25,03472.5%+0.5
2024Con holdChristopher Chope16.4%35.8%20.0%18.9% Ref4.0%4.8%7,45566.6%-5.9

Earlier years are on pre-2024 boundaries; comparable results on the new boundary will be added when sourced.

Constituencies most like Christchurch

Five seats with similar demographic profiles to Christchurch. Politics shown for context.

What would change this seat?

Move the sliders to set national vote shares. The per-seat projection updates live. Reset returns to the current 7-poll average.

Related

Sources

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