 Voters in some constituencies resisted outright domination by powerful landlords , but were often open to corruption . Electors were bribed individually in some boroughs , and collectively in others . In 1771 , for example , it was revealed that 81 voters in New Shoreham ( who constituted a majority of the electorate ) formed a corrupt organisation that called itself the " Christian Club " , and regularly sold the borough to the highest bidder . Especially notorious for their corruption were the " <unk> " , or individuals who had amassed fortunes in the British colonies in Asia and the West Indies . The <unk> , in some cases , even managed to wrest control of boroughs from the nobility and the gentry . Lord Chatham , Prime Minister of Great Britain during the 1760s , casting an eye on the fortunes made in India commented that " the importers of foreign gold have forced their way into Parliament , by such a torrent of corruption as no private hereditary fortune could resist " . 
