Constituency Profile
The ancient capital of Wessex, Winchester is a cathedral city with the arts and humanities-oriented University and an affluent population. Deprivation levels are very low, and the population is a mix of students, academics, London and Southampton commuters, and those employed locally in high-tech industries springing up across Hampshire.
Further from the city centre is more rural farming territory, though much of this has now been transferred to other seats, making the Winchester seat more urban.
Politically, Winchester has had an interesting recent history, and the events of 1997 swung the constituency strongly away from its usual status as a fairly safe Conservative seat, to which it only just reverted in 2010.
Read more about this topic: Winchester (UK Parliament Constituency)
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