The first election to be held in the newly-reformed House of Commons, the Whigs under Earl Grey won a landslide victory with a majority of 224 seats.

Earl Grey, Prime Minister since November 1830, led the first predominantly Whig administration since 1806–07, supported by Radicals and allied politicians, though no formal Liberal Party existed yet.

The Tories, led by the Duke of Wellington and Sir Robert Peel, had not fully adopted the Conservative label.

The results varied by region, with the Whigs dominant in Great Britain, but facing stronger Tory opposition in Wales and Ireland.

The Leader of the House of Commons since 1830 was Viscount Althorp (heir of the Earl Spencer), who also served as Chancellor of the Exchequer.

After leaving government office, Wellington continued to lead the Tory peers and was the overall Leader of the Opposition.

He had founded the Irish Repeal Association and it presented candidates independent of the two principal parties.

Apart from the disenfranchisement of Grampound for corruption in 1821 and the transfer of its two seats as additional members for Yorkshire from 1826, there had been no change in the constituencies of England since the 1670s.