Totnes is a parliamentary constituency in Devon represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since December 2019 by Anthony Mangnall, a Conservative. Mangnall defeated incumbent Sarah Wollaston who had originally been elected as a Conservative but defected to the Liberal Democrats earlier that year. History The current constituency was formed for the 1997 general election, from parts of the former South Hams constituency. This had, in 1983, largely replaced the previous Totnes constituency, which had existed in a wide form since 1885, but in a much narrower form from the Model Parliament. An original parliamentary borough of Totnes or Totness had been created in 1295. It returned two MPs to the House of Commons of England until 1707, then to the House of Commons of Great Britain until 1800, and finally to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom from 1801 until it was abolished under the Representation of the People Act 1867 with effect from the 1868 election. Political history The modern constituency has returned Conservatives in general elections since its 1997 recreation, which suggests a safe seat, though it came close to falling to the Liberal Democrats in 1997. Its Conservative MP since 2010, Dr. Sarah Wollaston, defected to the Liberal Democrats in 2019, after a brief spell as an independent, and prior to that as a member of Change UK, a new party formed from MPs formerly Conservative or Labour, after she became disillusioned with the Conservative Party's position on Brexit. She came second to a new Conservative candidate in 2019. During the 2016 EU Referendum, Totnes is estimated to have narrowly voted to Leave, by 53.9% vs. 46.1% Remain. Although the town of Totnes itself is a Remain stronghold, the rural areas of the constituency voted in favour of Brexit. Boundaries 1885–1918: The Municipal Borough of Totnes, and the Sessional Divisions of Ermington and Plympton, and Stanborough and Coleridge. 1918–1950: The Municipal Borough of Totnes, the Urban Districts of Ashburton, Buckfastleigh, Kingsbridge, Newton Abbot, Salcombe, and Teignmouth, the Rural District of Kingsbridge, and parts of the Rural Districts of Newton Abbot and Totnes. 1950–1974: The Municipal Boroughs of Clifton, Dartmouth, Hardness, and Totnes, the Urban Districts of Ashburton, Buckfastleigh, Kingsbridge, Newton Abbot, and Salcombe, the Rural Districts of Kingsbridge and Newton Abbot, and part of the Rural District of Totnes. 1974–1983: The Municipal Boroughs of Clifton, Dartmouth, Hardness, and Totnes, the Urban