1868–1885: The Hundreds of Axminster, Cliston, Colyton, East Budleigh, Exminster, Ottery St. Mary, Haytor, and Teignbridge, and Exeter Castle, and the parts of the hundred of Wonford that are not included in the city ofExeter. 1997–2010: The District of East Devon wards of Axminster Hamlets, Axminster Town, Beer, Budleigh Salterton, Colyton, Edenvale, Exmouth Brixington, Exmouth Halsdon, Exmouth Littleham Rural, Exmouth Littleham Urban, Exmouth Withycombe Raleigh, Exmouth Withycombe Urban, Lympstone, Newbridges, Newton Poppleford and Harpford, Raleigh, Seaton, Sidmouth Rural, Sidmouth Town, Sidmouth Woolbrook, Trinity, Upper Axe, Woodbury, and Yarty. 2010–present: The District of East Devon wards of Broadclyst, Budleigh, Clyst Valley, Exmouth Brixington, Exmouth Halsdon, Exmouth Littleham, Exmouth Town, Exmouth Withycombe Raleigh, Newton Poppleford and Harpford, Ottery St Mary Rural, Ottery St Mary Town, Raleigh, Sidmouth Rural, Sidmouth Sidford, Sidmouth Town, Whimple, and Woodbury and Lympstone, and the City of Exeter wards of St Loyes and Topsham. The constituency is in the county of Devon, directly east of Exeter and has a shoreline on the Jurassic Coast. Following a review of parliamentary representation in Devon by the Boundary Commission for England, which has increased the number of seats in the county from 11 to 12, East Devon was subject to significant boundary changes at the 2010 general election. In particular, the towns of Axminster and Seaton were transferred to the Tiverton and Honiton constituency. Also, two wards from the City of Exeter are now part of the East Devon seat.
Constituency profile
The main settlements in the constituency are the seaside resorts of Exmouth, Budleigh Salterton and Sidmouth, and the inland towns of Ottery St Mary and Cranbrook.
At the 1997 general election a new constituency of East Devon was established. Sir Peter Emery, MP for Honiton since a 1967 by-election, represented the new East Devon seat until standing down in 2001, when Hugo Swire was elected. In 2015 and 2017, the seat saw an unusually strong performance for the Independent anti-austerity candidacy of Claire Wright, a Devon County Councillor, winning 24% of the vote in 2015 and 35% in 2017 and coming second, and significantly ahead of any other candidates, both times.
