1868 United Kingdom general election
The 1868 United Kingdom general election was held between 17 November to 7 December 1868. The Liberal Party, under William Ewart Gladstone, defeated the governing Conservative minority government, led by Benjamin Disraeli.
This was the first general election to be held after the passage of the Reform Act 1867, which enfranchised many male householders, thus greatly increasing the number of men who could vote in elections in the United Kingdom. It was the first election held in the United Kingdom in which more than a million votes were cast; nearly triple the number of votes were cast compared to the previous election in 1865.
The establishment of the Church of Ireland was a dominant issue in the 1868 general election. Earlier that year, the House of Lords blocked the Established Church Bill, which would have imposed restrictions on the Irish Church. Gladstone's Liberal government, which favored disestablishment, used its parliamentary majority to pass the Irish Church Act the following year.
This was the last general election at which all seats were taken by only the two leading parties, although the parties at the time were loose coalitions and party affiliation was not listed on registration papers.