2005 General Election
The SNP had mixed fortunes in the general election held on May 5, 2005. They managed to gain two seats (Angus MacNeil winning in Na h-Eileanan An Iar and Stewart Hosie in Dundee East) from the notional four they held to bring their total to six Members of Parliament. However there was also disappointment in that the sitting MP Annabelle Ewing did not manage to win the new Ochil and South Perthshire constituency, finishing some 600 votes behind the Labour candidate.
There was also disappointment in that the SNP's share of the Scottish vote fell to 17.7% and that they finished third behind the Liberal-Democrats, this was the first time this had ever happened. The SNP's share of the vote across the Scottish Central Belt was particularly low, with some candidates only just managing to achieve a high enough share of the vote in their constituency to retain their £500 deposit.
However, Alex Salmond was in buoyant mood in the aftermath of the campaign, describing the SNP's Westminster parliamentary group as "Scotland's Super Six" and also promising that the SNP would be far more competitive in the 2007 election for the Scottish Parliament.
Read more about this topic: History Of The Scottish National Party
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