2010 United Kingdom government formation, Labour enters the picture
Labour MP Graham Stringer said, "I don't think it makes sense in the arithmetic – the numbers don't add up." However, in his account of Labour's negotiations with the Liberal Democrats, Andrew Adonis – who participated in the talks – writes that the general consensus among members of Gordon Brown's cabinet was that talks between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats would reach an impasse. "[ The] process would turn to our favour once the Tories and Lib Dems had rehearsed the extent of their differences".


2010 United Kingdom government formation, Labour enters the picture
With Labour now attempting to form its own coalition government, the Conservatives promised the Liberal Democrats a referendum on changing the voting mechanism to the alternative vote (AV) system. In response Labour said that it would introduce AV then hold a public referendum to approve it. In a statement outlining his decision to negotiate with Labour, Clegg said that although his party had made progress with the Conservatives, they had not "reached a comprehensive partnership agreement for a full Parliament" and negotiating with Labour was the "responsible thing to do".


2010 United Kingdom government formation, Labour enters the picture
The possibility of some SNP involvement in a Labour-led government materialised when Angus Robertson, the SNP's leader in the House of Commons suggested its MPs would be willing to join Labour, the Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru and MPs from other smaller parties to form a rainbow coalition. It was reported on 10 May that a meeting to discuss this scenario was held between Robertson, the SNP Chief Whip Stewart Hosie and Cabinet Office officials the previous evening. However, Labour's Douglas Alexander said he could not foresee a situation in which Labour could enter into government with the SNP because the two parties had "fundamental differences", and he made it clear that no senior Labour officials had been approached by anyone from the SNP.


2010 United Kingdom government formation, Coalition deal reached
By 11 May, the possibility of a deal between the Liberal Democrats and Labour was looking unlikely. Talks between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats continued, and after concluding that he would not be able to form a government, Brown announced his resignation that evening. He also resigned as leader of the Labour Party with immediate effect. He then left Downing Street with his wife and their children, and drove to Buckingham Palace where he tendered his resignation to the Queen and advised her to call for David Cameron.


2010 United Kingdom government formation, Coalition deal reached
Cameron became Prime Minister one hour after the Queen accepted Brown's resignation, and arrived at Downing Street with his wife, Samantha shortly afterwards. In his first address outside 10 Downing Street, he announced his intention to form a coalition government, the first since the Second World War, with the Liberal Democrats. Cameron appointed Nick Clegg as Deputy Prime Minister. Cameron met with his MPs in the Committee Room of the House of Commons at 10:00 pm, where he was greeted with cheering that could be heard from the central hall of the Commons.


2010 United Kingdom government formation, Coalition deal reached
Cameron later told a BBC documentary that he had not expected to become Prime Minister, and the coalition agreement had not yet been completed when Brown resigned. Speaking on the programme, Five Days That Changed Britain, broadcast on 29 July, he said that when he went to meet the Queen at Buckingham Palace, the coalition deal had not been finalised. Formally, the monarch can only invite a prospective Prime Minister to form a government; the shape of the government is for the new Prime Minister to decide. William Hague said that as Cameron travelled to the Palace, the coalition agreement was still being completed and signed.


2010 United Kingdom government formation, Coalition deal reached
Shortly after midnight on 12 May 2010, the Liberal Democrats emerged from a meeting of their Parliamentary party and Federal Executive to announce that the coalition deal had been "approved overwhelmingly", meaning that David Cameron would lead a coalition government of Conservatives and Liberal Democrats. Later that day, the two parties jointly published the Conservative – Liberal Democrat coalition agreement specifying the terms of the deal. Cameron appointed his first Cabinet, which included several senior Conservative and Liberal Democrat figures.


2010 United Kingdom government formation, Coalition deal reached
From the Conservatives, George Osborne became Chancellor of the Exchequer, William Hague was named as Foreign Secretary as well as the honorary title of First Secretary of State and Oliver Letwin was appointed as Minister of State for the Cabinet Office. Liberal Democrat appointments included Danny Alexander as Secretary of State for Scotland, Chris Huhne as Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, David Laws as Chief Secretary to the Treasury and Vince Cable became Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and President of the Board of Trade.


2010 United Kingdom government formation, Coalition deal reached
Cameron and Clegg gave their first joint press conference in the Downing Street Rose Garden on the afternoon of 12 May, telling journalists the purpose of their government would be "[T]o give our country the strong, stable and decisive leadership we need". The new Parliamentary session began with the State Opening of Parliament on 25 May. Cameron attended his first Prime Minister's Questions as Prime Minister on Wednesday 2 June.


2010 United Kingdom government formation, Coalition deal reached
Labour became the party of opposition, and with Brown's departure, Harriet Harman became its acting leader. On 18 May 2010 Labour's National Executive Committee announced the details of the leadership election. Ed Miliband was elected as the party's new leader at its annual national conference on 25 September 2010.


2010 United Kingdom local elections
The 2010 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 6 May 2010, when the 2010 general election also took place. Direct elections were held to all 32 London boroughs, all 36 metropolitan boroughs, 76 second-tier district authorities, 20 unitary authorities and various Mayoral posts, all in England. For those authorities elected "all out" these were the first elections since 2006. The results provided some comfort to the Labour Party, losing the general election on the same day, as it was the first time Conservative councillor numbers declined since 1996.


2010 United Kingdom local elections, London boroughs
All seats in the 32 London Boroughs were up for election.


2010 United Kingdom local elections, Metropolitan boroughs
One third of the seats in all 36 Metropolitan Boroughs were up for election.


2010 United Kingdom local elections, Unitary authorities
One third of the council seats were up for election in 20 unitary authorities.


2010 United Kingdom local elections, Unitary authorities
The elections in Stoke-on-Trent had originally been cancelled following a referendum result which decided to abolish the existing Mayor and Cabinet system of governance, with replacement elections to take place in 2011 following a review of the council by the Boundary Committee for England. However, it was later decided to hold elections to one-third of the council in 2010 as planned.


2010 United Kingdom local elections, Non-metropolitan districts
The elections that were due to be held in Exeter and Norwich were cancelled due to structural changes. After the 2010 general election, the structural changes were cancelled, leading to elections in both cities in September 2010 (see 2010 Exeter City Council election and 2010 Norwich City Council election).


2010 United Kingdom local elections, Non-metropolitan districts, Half of council
Seven district councils had half of their seats up for election.


2010 United Kingdom local elections, Non-metropolitan districts, Third of council
69 district councils had one third of their seats up for election.


2010 United Kingdom student protests
The 2010 United Kingdom student protests were a series of demonstrations in November and December 2010 that took place in several areas of the country, with the focal point of protests being in central London. Largely student-led, the protests were held in opposition to planned spending cuts to further education and an increase of the cap on tuition fees by the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government following their review into higher education funding in England. Student groups said that the intended cuts to education were excessive, would damage higher education, give students higher debts, and broke campaign promises made by politicians.


2010 United Kingdom student protests
The first major demonstration occurred on 10 November, jointly organised by the National Union of Students (NUS) and the University and College Union (UCU). It involved between 30,000 and 50,000 demonstrators marching through central London, with several hundred branching off to attack and occupy the Conservative Party headquarters. This measure brought condemnation from the establishment and a divide within the student movement over the appropriateness of such tactics. The National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts (NCAFC) called for a mass walk-out and demonstration on 24 November, with occupations taking place at campuses throughout the UK.


2010 United Kingdom student protests
A march in central London was kettled in Whitehall, resulting in violent confrontation with protesters. Further demonstrations were held in central London on 30 November, when police clashed with protesters and kettled them in Trafalgar Square, while other protests took place throughout the country. Another central London protest took place on 9 December, the day that the proposed reforms were passed into law, with protesters clashing with police and being kettled in Parliament Square.


2010 United Kingdom student protests
The student protests were unsuccessful in their aim of preventing the government's reforms. The demonstrations had been highly controversial in the UK, being condemned for instances of violence and vandalism by both the establishment and by protestors. The behaviour of the Metropolitan Police in dealing with the protests was also widely criticised for alleged instances of untruthfulness and excessive use of force.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Background, The Browne Report and proposed reforms
In November 2009, the Labour Party government of Prime Minister Gordon Brown commissioned a study into higher education funding in England. Chaired by Lord Browne of Madingley, the former chief executive of BP, the report was to be titled the Browne Review. In the build up to the United Kingdom General Election in May 2010, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Nick Clegg, pledged that he would vote against any proposed increase in tuition fees if elected to Parliament.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Background, The Browne Report and proposed reforms
Following the election and resulting hung parliament, Clegg made an agreement with the Conservative Party to form a coalition government in which Conservative leader David Cameron became Prime Minister and Clegg became Deputy Prime Minister. The Browne Review was subsequently published in October 2010, and contained the suggestion that the government should remove outright the existing cap of £3,290 on tuition fees. The government rejected this proposal, instead choosing to keep a cap but increasing it to £9,000.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Background, The Browne Report and proposed reforms
David Willetts, the Minister of State for Universities and Science, stated that the measures were "a very progressive package" and "at the end of this we will have a better university system than we have at the moment." Contravening his pre-election pledge, Clegg expressed support for the rise in the cap on tuition fees, which would result in future students paying higher fees for their university education.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Background, Student opposition
Student union leaders were critical of the cuts. The National Union of Students (NUS) feared that the increased cap on tuition fees would prevent potential students from poorer backgrounds from attending university. Many protesters focused in particular on Clegg's campaign promise that he would oppose any rise in tuition fees. David Barclay, the president of the University of Oxford's student union, said: "This is the day a generation of politicians learn that though they might forget their promises, students won't." Rahul Mansigani, the students' union president for the University of Cambridge, said: "Large numbers of students voted for the Liberal Democrats, and there is no question that the pledge is a binding commitment."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Background, Student opposition
Two weeks before, on 28 October, a protest was held in the University of Oxford to coincide with a visit from the Liberal Democrat minister and Business Secretary Vince Cable. Cable cancelled his visit after taking advice from the police about the protest. Several days later, on 3 November, there was a student protest in Dublin. The subsequent London protest was described by one Irish reporter as "scenes bizarrely similar" to those in the Irish capital.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Background, Student opposition
The initial event was the largest student protest in Britain since the Labour government first proposed the Teaching and Higher Education Act in 1998.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, London march
The first major demonstration in protest at the government's proposed reforms was held on 10 November 2010 in central London, jointly organised by the National Union of Students (NUS) and the University and College Union (UCU). This demonstration was officially known as "Fund Our Future: Stop Education Cuts", although also termed "Demo 2010" or "Demo-lition 10.11.10". Arriving from all regions of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, approximately 30,000 to 52,000 protesters attended the demonstration.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, London march
The demonstration's route was pre-approved with the Metropolitan Police Service, with marchers moving from Whitehall past Downing Street, the home of the Prime Minister, and then past the Houses of Parliament, chanting such slogans as "no ifs, no buts – no education cuts", "they say cut back – we say fight back", "I say Tories – you say scum". Journalist Harry Mount of The Daily Telegraph, said: "Perhaps because their cause was justified, the students I saw had none of the swaggering, self-righteous manner of the student protester of legend."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, London march
Political groups that sent contingents to take part included the Labour Party, Plaid Cymru, the Green Party, Socialist Workers Party, Socialist Party, Revolution, Young Communist League, Revolutionary Communist Group, and Communist Students. A few members of parliament (MPs) joined the demonstration, among them Labour MP John McDonnell, who told reporters: "This is the biggest workers' and students' demonstration in decades. It just shows what can be done when people get angry. We must build on this". Representatives of the National Pensioners Convention also took part, with the group's banner carrier, Janet Shapiro, stating that: "We're here because we believe education should be free, funded by the taxpayer. It is something that benefits the community, the country."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, London march
At the end of the march, a rally took place outside Tate Britain where demonstrators were addressed by the UCU general secretary Sally Hunt, who introduced a series of clips displayed on a giant plasma screen featuring Clegg giving a series of promises to the electorate on tuition fees, all of which he had subsequently broken. Hunt stated that making the public university system in Britain "the most expensive in the world" was unfair, that discouraging young people from going to college was not progressive, and that the increase in tuition fees represented further debts for students.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, London march
The rally was also addressed by NUS President Aaron Porter and the Trades Union Congress Deputy general secretary Frances O'Grady. O'Grady offered the message to the government that: "Don't you dare tell us we're all in this together. The deficit certainly wasn't caused by the students." The protest was scheduled to end at 2 pm, but slightly overran. The Metropolitan Police were expecting 20,000 demonstrators to turn out, well below the 50,000 figure most widely quoted in the press after the event, and did not expect any violence, so deployed only 225 officers to police the event.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Millbank occupation
In the afternoon, as protesters passed the Houses of Parliament and moved towards Tate Britain for the rally, several thousand surrounded 30 Millbank in Westminster, campaign headquarters of the Conservative Party, despite attempts by NUS organisers to stop them. Forcing their way past the limited police presence, approximately 200 people broke in and occupied the building, whilst a thousand more cheered and supported them from outside. These protesters lit placards on fire, and smashed windows before occupying and vandalising the reception area. Staff working in the building were evacuated by police around 1 pm.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Millbank occupation
Around 100 protesters proceeded to the roof of the building, chanting slogans including "Greece! France! Now here too". Initial press sources blamed this action on a group of anarchists. This was later disputed, with a reporter from The Guardian noting that most of the protesters occupying the building were students who had been radicalised in opposition to the cuts, and were not all political anarchists.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Millbank occupation
Riot police from the Territorial Support Group arrived an hour after the building was occupied to remove the protesters. In retaliation, the police were pelted with eggs, rotten fruit, banners, and shards of glass. One of the protesters on the building's roof, Edward Woolard, threw a fire extinguisher onto the police below. He received instant criticism from some of the protesting crowds, who called on those on the roof to "stop throwing shit".


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Millbank occupation
To control the situation, police used the controversial technique of kettling to trap the protesters within Millbank Square, the forecourt to 30 Millbank, whilst protesters on the outside of the building were pushed back. The police began letting demonstrators out of the building from 6:30 pm, arresting those whom they believed were responsible for vandalism.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Millbank occupation
The demonstration led to a disruption in London's transport, with journalist Harry Mount stating: "I have never seen London traffic so jammed in 39 years living in the city." Alongside the occupation of Millbank, a smaller number of protesters had travelled to the headquarters of the Liberal Democrats in Cowley Street, where a car window was smashed. In all, 14 people were injured and required hospitalisation, at least three of whom were police officers, whilst police arrested 35 of the demonstrators, sending them off to various police stations around the city. Later accounts that the numbers arrested had risen to 54, (33 men and 21 women), ten of whom were aged under 18 and the majority of whom were students.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Response to the Millbank occupation, Students and unions
NUS President Aaron Porter condemned the occupation of 30 Millbank, claiming that it was caused by "those who are here to cause trouble" and that he was "disgusted that the actions of a minority of idiots are trying to undermine 50,000 who came to make a peaceful protest." General Secretary of UCU Sally Hunt also condemned the occupation, declaring that "the overwhelming majority of staff and students on the march came here to send a clear and peaceful message to the politicians.... The actions of a minority, out of 50,000 people, is regrettable." Oxford University's Student Union (OUSU) President David Barclay issued a statement declaring that "OUSU supports the rights of students to protest non-violently. It is hugely unfortunate that some people yesterday were injured and that arrests were made."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Response to the Millbank occupation, Students and unions
Contrastingly, other student leaders, trade unionists, and academics expressed support for elements of the occupation of 30 Millbank. Amongst others, the president of University of London Union Clare Solomon, the Education Officer of the London School of Economics, Ashok Kumar, the Education and Campaigns Officer at University College London, Michael Chessum, the National Union of Students' black students' officer Kanjay Sesay, the NUS' LGBT students' officers Vicki Baars and Alan Bailey, the President of the RMT trade union Alex Gordon and the playwright Lee Hall all signed a statement declaring that:


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Response to the Millbank occupation, Students and unions
We reject any attempt to characterise the Millbank protest as small, "extremist" or unrepresentative of our movement. We celebrate the fact that thousands of students were willing to send a message to the Tories that we will fight to win. Occupations are a long established tradition in the student movement that should be defended. It is this kind of action in France and Greece that has been an inspiration to many workers and students in Britain faced with such a huge assault on jobs, benefits, housing and the public sector. We stand with the protesters, and anyone who is victimised as a result of the protest.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Response to the Millbank occupation, Students and unions
Solomon informed the BBC that she had "no problem with direct actions or occupation", and when questioned regarding the damage done to Millbank, responded that "these were a few windows of the Tory Party headquarters – what they're doing to our education is absolutely millions... and they want to complain about a few windows." Some socialist and student commentators criticised Porter and the NUS for their response to the situation, accusing them of careerism. Meanwhile, various university Conservative societies around London condemned the protests, and criticised students' unions for providing the "false impression that the majority of students are left-wing" and opposed to the governments' proposed reforms.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Response to the Millbank occupation, Government and press
The Metropolitan Police Service admitted that they were unprepared to deal with the occupation of 30 Millbank, something which they had not been expecting. Sir Paul Stephenson, the Metropolitan Police's Commissioner, told the press that he was "embarrassed" by how police had lost control of the situation, and condemned what he saw as "thuggish, loutish behaviour by criminals." Stephenson remarked that "the one thing I would say is that it must have been an awful time for the people trying to go about their daily business in those buildings.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Response to the Millbank occupation, Government and press
I feel terribly sorry that they have had to go through what must have been quite a traumatic experience… We are determined to make sure that sort of thing does not happen again on our streets. I'm clear on that, the Met is clear on that." His views were echoed by Mayor of London Boris Johnson, who stated: "This is intolerable and all those involved will be pursued and they will face the full force of the law… The Metropolitan Police commissioner has assured me that there will be a vigorous post-incident investigation. He will also be reviewing police planning and response."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Response to the Millbank occupation, Government and press
Prime Minister David Cameron condemned the occupation of Millbank, stating that he would not abandon his position on the issue of education cuts. Speaking from the 2010 G20 Seoul summit in South Korea, Cameron said the occasion had been "extremely serious" and praised the "bravery" of the police officers. He also stated that the actions of the protesters were "unacceptable" and that "I was worried for the safety of the people in the building because I know people who work there".


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Response to the Millbank occupation, Government and press
The following morning, Clegg went on ITV's Daybreak to state: "I should have been more careful perhaps in signing that pledge [to not increase tuition fees]... At the time [prior to his election] I really thought we could do it. I just didn't know, of course, before we came into government, quite what the state of the finances were."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Response to the Millbank occupation, Government and press
A reporter from The Daily Telegraph commented that the "anarchic behaviour" of those occupying Millbank was "counter-productive" to the students' cause, and that it was the photographs of "a few hundred vicious hotheads" that would "linger" in the public imagination rather than that of the main march. The Financial Times reported that an anonymous vice-chancellor from a London university had told them that the violence would undermine the campaign, and that it "could not have gone better for the government. George Osborne will be delighted."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Related protests
In the following days, smaller protests were held in Manchester and Cambridge, with no violent confrontations. On 11 November, student protesters occupied a building at the University of Manchester for three hours, demanding to see the accounts that discussed how government funding cuts would affect students. Between 60 and 100 students held a peaceful sit-in at Manchester's John Owens Building on Oxford Road after an NUS meeting earlier that day.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 10 November, Related protests
Representing this group, protester Jeremy Buck said: "This is just what a few students who had the energy left after the London demo managed to achieve… Imagine what will happen when they have enough time to organise properly for the 24th. It is a matter of watch this space." That same day, protesters at the University of Cambridge held a demonstration against the cuts at the university's annual science, engineering and technology careers fair. On 23 November, anti-education cuts protesters had assembled outside of the offices of The Guardian newspaper, where Clegg was giving his Hugo Young lecture. They brought out an effigy of Clegg, sentencing it to death and executing it by hanging, shouting the slogan "Nick Clegg, shame on you, shame on you for turning blue".


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November
A second significant demonstration took place in London on 24 November, which again led to clashes with police, this time outside Whitehall, after police kettled a large crowd.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November
An organisation known as the National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts (NCAFC) organised a mass national walk-out of education and protest for 24 November. As a part of this, demonstrations were held in London and other locations across the United Kingdom. According to a group on the social networking website Facebook, 25,000 people had signed up to take the day off from studies and protest prior to the actual event, and these protesters included not only university students, but also school children who had walked out of lessons to join the demonstration.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November
The NCAFC encouraged protesters to use social media to invite others to join them. One of those protesting was Jessica Linley, a law student at the University of Nottingham who had been crowned Miss England in September 2010 and who used her status to gain media coverage for the cause, telling press that she would not be able to afford to go to university if the tuition fees were increased, and that "these sweeping austerity measures are unacceptable."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Whitehall march
Several thousand protesters, most of whom were students or school children, gathered in Trafalgar Square, central London, late in the morning. They proceeded toward Whitehall shouting the slogan, "fuck David Cameron". Believing that there had been a lack of officers at 10 November demonstration, the Metropolitan Police drafted in 1000 police officers from across Greater London to oversee the event, almost five times the number at 10 November. Police informed press that they planned to monitor fringe elements within the demonstration whom they believed planned to encourage "vandalism and violence".


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Whitehall march
At Whitehall, just before 1 pm, police prevented the protesters from reaching Parliament Square and the Houses of Parliament, setting up a line of riot police to kettle the protesters. A reporter The Guardian described the crowd at this point as being "predominantly good natured, although very noisy". Nonetheless, the demonstrators tried to push through the police line, leading to clashes. An unoccupied police van which had been left in the midst of the crowd was vandalised; protesters rocked it back and forth, climbed on its roof, smashed its windows, wrote graffiti on it and threw a smoke bomb inside. A group of school girls encircled the van, urging people not to vandalise it. One of them later told reporters that "the cause that we're here for today isn't about 'I hate the police, I want to burn the police and I want to destroy everything they represent.'"


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Whitehall march
At around 6 pm, mounted police charged at the north end of the crowd to push them back; despite video evidence police denied that this was an actual charge, describing it as crowd control using horses. Roughly 1000 protesters broke free of the police kettle, running throughout central London while pursued by police; The Guardian's Paul Lewis stated that "police were caught in a game of cat and mouse, along Charing Cross, Covent Garden and Piccadilly Circus." Some of these protesters committed acts of vandalism along the side streets, including knocking over rubbish bins and throwing traffic cones into the road. Various bus shelters and ticket machines in the area were vandalised, with Transport for London diverting buses away from the unrest.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Whitehall march
Approximately 200 protesters were unable to escape and remained kettled in Whitehall. Police falsely informed press that the crowd were provided with toilet facilities and water; protesters disputed these claims on social media, with ULU President Clare Solomon commenting on Facebook: "we're still illegally kettled in the freezing cold on Whitehall. No food, water or toilets despite what the police are telling the media. Thousands of young people needing to go home." To keep warm, protesters set fire to a ticket machine within the Square, prompting riot police to secure the machine and put out the flames. From 9 to 10 pm, police permitted the rest of the Whitehall protesters to leave, approximately nine to ten hours after they had first been contained, some being searched as they left. During the clashes, police arrested 41 protesters.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Occupations and local protests
Across the UK, protesters occupied university buildings in at least 12 universities. On 23 November, protesters occupied the picture gallery corridor of Royal Holloway, University of London. They were later joined by supportive members of university staff who took part in what was labelled a "teach-in". On 24 November, the Language Centre at London South Bank University was occupied for 51 hours by over 100 students as part of the "Defend LSBU! Defend Our Education!" campaign.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Occupations and local protests
That same day, students occupied the Jeremy Bentham Room in University College London, stating that they were protesting against "savage cuts to higher education and government attempts to force society to pay for a crisis it didn't cause." A BBC reporter visited the occupation, remarking that the protesters "seem as distant from the old left as they do from the new right" and that "you get a reminder that these are students born in the 1990s. They're quoting Harry Potter rather than Che Guevara." Protesters also occupied the University of East London, demanding that university managers "put pressure on the government on the issue of H[higher] E[ducation] cuts and tuition fee rises".


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Occupations and local protests
On 24 November, students and supporters went into occupation of Appleton Tower at the University of Edinburgh, stating "We stand firm alongside all other students, university staff and others nationwide affected by education cuts and the risk this poses to the future of higher education." At Manchester's University Place, 3000 students assembled to demonstrate, but several hundred broke away to march towards the town hall. A group of about 100 occupied a lecture theatre in the Roscoe Building. At the University of Oxford, students initially occupied the Radcliffe Camera. At the University of Cambridge, 200 students scaled the fence of Senate House and marched onto the grounds of King's College, then on 26 November students started an 11-day occupation of part of Old Schools, the main administrative block of the University.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Occupations and local protests
At the University of Bristol, 2000 protesters clashed with police when they tried to move into the city centre. Four were arrested. In Brighton, 3000 demonstrators marched through the city, with nearly 50 occupying a university building. Hundreds of students from Kingston University and various local schools staged an impromptu march through the town and a sit down protest at College Roundabout, leading to one arrest.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Occupations and local protests
In the morning of 24 November, demonstrators at the University of Birmingham occupied the Aston Webb building, the site of the Prime Ministerial debates earlier in the year; they issued a statement in which they declared that "we believe the government's cuts to be economically unnecessary, unfair and ideologically motivated" and that "if [the government] continue to destroy the livelihoods of the majority to benefit the rich and powerful minority, they will face increasingly widespread and radical action." In Leeds, protesters amassed at the University of Leeds.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Occupations and local protests
Hundreds of them had walked out of the local Allerton Grange High School to join the demonstration, and later occupied the Michael Sadler lecture theatre and a room at Leeds Metropolitan University. A room at the University of Plymouth was also occupied. At Cardiff University, around 200 protesters occupied a lecture theatre after failing to gain entry to the vice-chancellor's building.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Response
The great majority of protests across the country [on Wednesday] passed off peacefully… The police let the demonstrators march through town centres and take part in some direct action. However, the actions of the Metropolitan Police yesterday were absolutely outrageous. It's a real scandal that the Met has taken these actions and we would urge them to change their tactics for further demonstrations.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Response
During the Whitehall incident, the Metropolitan Police publicly defended their use of kettling, with Chief Inspector Jane Connors claiming that they had only used it as "a last resort". She stated: "it's a valid tactic. Police officers came under attack and we needed to make sure the violence didn't spread out across the London streets." The police came under increasing criticism however, particularly as there were large numbers of children and young teenagers in the crowd, who were held for nearly ten hours in near-zero temperatures.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Response
Green Party MP Caroline Lucas brought up the topic in the House of Commons that afternoon, stating: "there are many hundreds of students and school children who have been kettled for over four hours and are going to be out there for another several hours, according to the police, in the freezing cold… whatever one thinks of the student protest, [holding people against their will in the contained crowd was] neither proportionate, nor, indeed, effective."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Response
At a meeting of the Metropolitan Police Authority the following day, the Metropolitan Police's Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson defended the tactics. He condemned the protest. He was criticised by Jenny Jones, a Green Party member of the London Assembly, who told him: "when you imprison thousands of people, which is essentially what you did yesterday, you do have a duty of care to them... You kept people for nine-and-a-half hours. You punished innocent people for going on a protest."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Response
A spokesperson for Prime Minister Cameron stated that "people have a right to engage in lawful and peaceful protest, but there is no place for violence or intimidation", while education minister David Willetts responded by claiming that protesting students did not understand the government's plans. Clegg stated on BBC Radio 2 that "I hate in politics, as in life, to make promises that you then find you can't keep. We made a promise we can't deliver – we didn't win the election outright and there are compromises in coalition."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 24 November, Response
Labour Party leader Ed Miliband stated that he would not rule out joining further demonstrations, remarking that "I was quite tempted to go out and talk to them [the protesters]. Peaceful demonstrations are part of our society. As Labour leader I am willing to talk to people who are part of them."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 30 November, Central London protests
A third central London protest was organised for Tuesday 30 November, a day that saw cold temperatures and snow in the city. Protesters assembled at Trafalgar Square, but a police line prevented their march down Whitehall towards the Houses of Parliament; the NCAFC accused the Police of "pre-emptively block[ing]" the protest route. Fearing that they would be kettled in the Square, protesters dispersed throughout the city center, pursued by police. Other officers stood photographing and filming the students for later identification, while police vans blocked off certain streets. Some protesters chanted "Peaceful protest! Peaceful protest!"


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 30 November, Central London protests
and "no ifs, no buts, no education cuts", and others blew vuvuzelas and played reggae from portable stereo systems. A BBC reporter talked to members of the demonstration, noting that while many desired a peaceful outcome, others believed that violent confrontation with the police was inevitable. Many were angry with how they had been portrayed in the media, with one commenting that confrontation was not caused by "hardcore anarchists" but by "students who are very, very angry."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 30 November, Central London protests
Many protesters ran onto Pall Mall and then past St. James's Park. Denied access to Parliament Square by police, they turned around and headed toward Westminster Abbey. A reporter from The Guardian noted that "the march is fracturing – people are going up different streets and getting lost. Texts come through from the front, giving information." The reporter noted that police pursued protesters, and that "it feels like 'kiss chase' – or, when I see a policeman punch a boy out of the way, entirely without provocation, 'punch chase'." Many protesters returned to Trafalgar Square, where they were still unable to march down to Whitehall due to the heavy police line.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 30 November, Central London protests
The police kettled those in the Square, whilst some of the protesters waved banners with slogans such as "Don't put the kettle on, Mr. Cameron" and "I Can't Believe It's Not Thatcher". The police "put lines [of officers] across all the exits" to the kettled area of the Square, but reportedly allowed small groups of protesters to leave, even though the majority, around 150 to 200, decided to stay and continue protesting in the snow. Some protesters burned placards and one spray-painted the word "Revolution" on Nelson's Column.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 30 November, Central London protests
Others threw plastic bottles and fireworks at police lines, and at one point there "was a scuffle as a knot of policemen rushed one of the protesters, grabbing him to arrest him, and the crowd flocked angrily to the area." At another time, a group of riot police moved into the crowd of protesters to attempt to secure Nelson's Column, only to be surrounded by demonstrators shouting "Who's kettling who? We're kettling you!" Other slogans shouted at police during the protest included "Shame on you!" and "Your job's next".


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 30 November, Central London protests
Police then arrested 146 demonstrators who refused to leave the Square; 139 of them were arrested for breach of the peace, whilst seven were arrested on suspicion of violent disorder. Seven more had been arrested in central London earlier in the day. As one reporter noted, "above us, on the steps of the National Gallery, tourists look confused at this vision of Britain 2010, angry and fighting in the snow."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 30 November, Catford protest
The night before, on 28 November, a crowd of two to three hundred protesters gathered outside of Lewisham Town Hall in Catford, south London, where a council meeting was then in progress, to protest against wider public sector cuts. Several Youtube videos of the incident were shown on national news, including the BBC. Many of the protesters had come from nearby sixth forms (due to potential Education Maintenance Allowance cuts) and also from Goldsmiths College.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 30 November, Catford protest
Demonstrators, playing music and political slogans from boomboxes forced their way into the building, where a smoke bomb was let off, while another protester climbed onto the roof and unfurled a banner. Several more flares were set off outside and windows smashed, with riot police from the Territorial Support Group close by, were called and several arrests were made. One of the protesters, Sue Luxton, a former Green Party councillor who had subsequently become a teacher, told the press that "I wanted to peacefully express my anger at the cuts... People were angry that they couldn't get in." Jeremy Burton, the Lewisham Borough Commander, later told press that "unfortunately due to the actions of a minority of people present a number of my officers were injured whilst carrying out their police duties", with 16 officers being treated for minor injuries.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 30 November, Protests elsewhere
On the day of the main demonstration, there were also further protests across the United Kingdom, including in Cardiff, Cambridge, Colchester, Newcastle, Bath, Leeds, Sheffield, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Belfast, Brighton, York, Manchester, Plymouth, Scunthorpe and Bristol. About 1,500 students, including school children, took part in the protest in Brighton, whilst protests in Bristol involved police being pelted with mustard and ten demonstrators were arrested. In Sheffield, police were pelted with snowballs as they guarded the constituency office of Nick Clegg from a crowd of two hundred protesters. The British protests coincided with those in Italy, where demonstrations occurred in Milan, Turin, Naples, Venice, Palermo, Bari, Genoa, and Rome where riot police were called in to prevent students from gaining access to the parliament building.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 30 November, Protests elsewhere
Meanwhile, whilst occupations that had begun the previous week continued at University College London, Newcastle University and the University of Cambridge, a new one began at the University of Nottingham, where 150 protesters occupied a building. University buildings and local government buildings were occupied in Birmingham and Oxford while police blocked an attempt at occupation of the council building in York. The protesters occupying the council chamber in Birmingham left after four hours, with a police spokesperson commending the protesters for their "wholly peaceful" behaviour, and noting that it "couldn't have been more different from the violent clashes seen recently in London".


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Parliament Square protest
On Thursday 9 December, the day of the scheduled vote on education reform in the Houses of Parliament, two separate protests were organised in central London; one led by the National Union of Students (NUS), the other jointly by the University of London Union (ULU) and the NCAFC, with an expected 40,000 people attending. ULU members handed out green hard hats with the words "Tax the banks, not the students" on them, whilst a rally was held in Bloomsbury at midday, where ULU President Solomon addressed the crowd.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Parliament Square protest
The Metropolitan Police had positioned lines of riot police and police vans along the Houses of Parliament, to prevent any protesters gaining access to it. Superintendent Julia Pendry issued a statement saying: "Protesters will be allowed sight and sound of parliament. However, there is evidence to suggest a number of people will come to London intent on causing violence and disorder. They are jumping on the bandwagon of these demonstrations with no intention to protest or interest in student tuition fees… those who are intent on committing crime will also be dealt with and they will suffer the consequences of their actions."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Parliament Square protest
The protesters marched from Bloomsbury to Parliament Square in the afternoon, where they pushed down metal barriers and occupied the Square. Around 3:30 pm, police kettled those several thousand protesters in the square, preventing them from leaving, stating that it was necessary "due to the level of violence that our officers are facing." Mounted police charged into the crowd on one side of the Square in an attempt to disperse them. A field hospital was set up on the green providing emergency first aid to protesters as well as tea and food within the containment area.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Parliament Square protest
Around 30 protesters were treated, most for head injuries. Police used batons to hit protesters, and a St John Ambulance member told press that he had treated ten protesters for head injuries from being struck by police batons by 4.30 pm. One protester, philosophy student Alfie Meadows, suffered a blow to the head from a police truncheon that knocked him unconscious. Taken to hospital, it was discovered that he was suffering from bleeding of the brain, and required brain surgery. Reporter Jonathan Haynes of The Guardian, who was present, characterised the police tactics as "very heavy handed".


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Parliament Square protest
Police informed press that they were allowing young and vulnerable protesters to leave the kettle, but those inside the kettle, including journalists, asserted that this was untrue. At 5:41 pm, news reached the protesters that the government had voted to support the proposals. Clashes ensued between the crowd and the police, and the protesters pulled along metal fencing to separate themselves from riot police, who were trying to push them all into the centre of the Square. Later on in the evening, with the protesters still kettled in the Square, protesters smashed all of the windows on the ground floor of Her Majesty's Treasury. At 21:15, the protest was forced onto Westminster Bridge where it was kettled until approximately 23:30.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Protests elsewhere in central London
Due to the Parliament Square protest being kettled, many other demonstrators could not enter the Square and so disseminated across much of the rest of central London. Some were separately kettled around The Cenotaph, where Charlie Gilmour, the adopted son of Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour and a student at Girton College, Cambridge, was pictured swinging from a Union Flag on the memorial; he later apologised, claiming that he "did not realise" it was the Cenotaph.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Protests elsewhere in central London
Meanwhile, many of those students who remained around the area of Trafalgar Square continued to protest, with about 150 holding a sit-in in the adjacent National Gallery, while others attempted to set fire to the Trafalgar Square Christmas tree.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Protests elsewhere in central London
During the protests, a car taking The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall to the evening's Royal Variety Performance at the London Palladium was attacked on Regent Street and Home Secretary Theresa May confirmed a protester 'made contact' with Camilla. In Oxford Street, Topshop was damaged, as rioters sprayed "pay your tax" on the building and broke windows.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Response
Home Secretary Theresa May issued a statement in which she "utterly condemned" the actions of the protesters, and declared that "What we are seeing in London tonight, the wanton vandalism, smashing of windows, has nothing to do with peaceful protest... Attacks on police officers and property show that some of the protesters have no respect for London or its citizens."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Response
Nearly 50 people complained to the IPCC about police behaviour during the various protests held around the country, with the majority directed against the Metropolitan Police, including complaints of violence used against protesters.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Response
Following the protests, video footage of Jody McIntyre, who has cerebral palsy, being pulled out of his wheelchair by police, who claimed they were acting in the interest of his own safety (he had positioned himself to the front-line facing the police) was posted to YouTube. The footage showed him being pulled out of his wheelchair and dragged across the ground by officers from the Metropolitan Police during the protests. McIntyre said he had been pulled out of his wheelchair twice; only one incident was shown in the video footage.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Response
An interview with McIntyre about the incident by BBC journalist Ben Brown on 13 December 2010 was described by The Guardian newspaper as "having a distinct lack of sympathy from the BBC" and that the incident had "attracted thousands of complaints." Mcintyre's complaint was later rejected by Scotland Yard. His subsequent appeal was partially upheld by the IPCC.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, 9 December, Response
Street medics treated student protesters during the parliament square protest on Thursday 9 December, the day of the scheduled vote to raise university tuition fees. A field tent was set up on the green providing emergency first aid to protesters as well as tea and food within the containment area. Around 30 protesters were treated, most for head injuries.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Influence
On 30 November, following the third main day of protesting, the Welsh Assembly announced that it would not permit an increase in fees for Welsh students. A reporter from the BBC noted that this meant that if the plans went through in England, "it would mean that an English student at a university in England could pay more than £17,000 more for a three-year degree than a Welsh student on the same course." .


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Influence
A writer in British newspaper The Guardian, writing several hours before the government vote on the topic, noted that "It seems likely the tuition fees bill will pass but I'd still argue that – whatever your view on the merits of the new fees system – the protests have been a success at least in calling politicians to account for broken pledges, something you see rarely theses [sic] days."


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Influence
In July 2011, three school children will challenge the kettling of children at the 24 November 2010 protest. They will seek a Judicial Review in the High Court, arguing in particular that children had a right to protest and that their safety was jeopardised, breaking the laws of the European Convention on Human Rights, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Children Act 2004,


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Influence
In November 2012, two years after the 2010 demonstrations, protests ignited again from the student movement. Organised by the NUS, around 10,000 demonstrators marched in central London.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Influence
After a five-day trial in the High Court in June 2012, 27-year-old assistant tutor Luke Cooper, reported to be completing a PhD in international relations at the University of Sussex, was awarded £35,000 over a front page Evening Standard article and £25,000 over a follow-up piece in the Daily Mail that implied he was the "ringleader" of the protesters who invaded the Conservative Party's headquarters. Cooper complained that the allegations were untrue, threatened his future academic prospects and left his reputation "as badly trashed" as the Millbank Tower.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Influence
The years following the student protests saw a leftward shift in the politics of the NUS. In 2014 the NUS Conference voted in support of free education, reversing the union's previous policy of advocating a graduate tax as a replacement for tuition fees, which it had adopted in the late 2000s. The Student Broad Left made progressive gains in the mid-2010s, culminating in the election of SBL candidate Malia Bouattia as NUS President.


2010 United Kingdom student protests, Influence
Participants in the protests went on to be involved in a number of left-wing causes, such as the trade union movement, the climate movement, Palestinian and Kurdish solidarity, alternative media (such as Aaron Bastani, co-founder of Novara Media), migrant and refugee solidarity campaigns, and Momentum and the Labour Party under the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn (such as James Schneider, who served as Corbyn's head of strategic communications).


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference
The 2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference was held in Cancún, Mexico, from 29 November to 10 December 2010. The conference is officially referred to as the 16th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 16) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the 6th session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties (CMP 6) to the Kyoto Protocol.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference
In addition, the two permanent subsidiary bodies of the UNFCCC — the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) and the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) — held their 33rd sessions. The 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference extended the mandates of the two temporary subsidiary bodies, the Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol (AWG-KP) and the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention (AWG-LCA), and they met as well.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Background
Following the non-binding Copenhagen Accord put forth in 2009, international expectations for the COP16 conference were reduced. Four preparatory rounds of negotiations (i.e. sessions of the AWG-KP and the AWG-LCA) were held during 2010. The first three of these were in Bonn, Germany, from 9 to 11 April, 1 to 11 June (in conjunction with the 32nd sessions of SBSTA and SBI), and 2 to 6 August. The Bonn talks were reported as ending in failure. The fourth round of talks in Tianjin, China, made minimal progress and was marked by a clash between the US and China. The Ambo declaration was adopted at the Tarawa Climate Change Conference on 10 November 2010 by Australia, Brazil, China, Cuba, Fiji, Japan, Kiribati, Maldives, Marshall Islands, New Zealand, Solomon Islands and Tonga. It calls for more and immediate action, and was slated to be presented at COP 16.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Expectations
In August 2010, Ban Ki-moon stated that he doubted whether member states would reach a "globally agreed, comprehensive deal," suggesting instead that incremental steps might come.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Expectations
After the Tianjin talks in October Christiana Figueres, executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), said, "This week has got us closer to a structured set of decisions that can be agreed in Cancun ... This is the greatest societal and economic transformation that the world has ever seen."


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Expectations
Other commentators spoke of a positive spirit of negotiation and of paving the way for agreement in Cancun.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome
The outcome of the summit was an agreement adopted by the states' parties that called for a large "Green Climate Fund", and a "Climate Technology Centre" and network. It looked forward to a second commitment period for the Kyoto Protocol.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome
The agreement recognizes that climate change represents an urgent and potentially irreversible threat to human societies and the planet, which needs to be urgently addressed by all parties. It affirms that climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our time and that all parties must share a vision for long-term cooperative action in order to achieve the objective of the Convention, including the achievement of a global goal. It recognizes that warming of the climate system is scientifically verified and that most of the observed increase in global average temperatures since the mid twentieth century are very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentrations, as assessed by the IPCC in its Fourth Assessment Report.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome
The agreement further recognizes that deep cuts in global greenhouse gas emissions are required, with a view to reducing global greenhouse gas emissions so as to hold the increase in global average temperature below 2 °C above pre-industrial levels, and that parties should take urgent action to meet this long-term goal, consistent with science and on the basis of equity; and recognizes the need to consider, in the context of the first review, strengthening in relation to a global average temperature rise of 1.5 °C. The agreement also notes that addressing climate change requires a paradigm shift towards building a low-carbon society.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome
The agreement calls on rich countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions as pledged in the Copenhagen Accord, and for developing countries to plan to reduce their emissions.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome
A 40-nation "transition committee" was to meet by the end of March 2011, but it was deferred until late April amid squabbles among Latin American countries and the Asia bloc about who should be on the committee. The committee is due to present a complete plan for the fund by the  next climate conference in South Africa starting in November, 2011.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome, Adaptation
The conference established the Cancun Adaptation Framework and the Adaptation Committee, and it invited Parties to strengthen and, where necessary, establish regional adaptation centres and networks.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome, Mitigation
Developed countries should submit annual greenhouse gas inventories and inventory reports and biennial reports on their progress. It agrees that developing country parties will take nationally appropriate mitigation actions in the context of sustainable development, supported and enabled by technology, financing and capacity-building, aimed at achieving a deviation in emissions relative to "business as usual" emissions in 2020. It decides to set up a registry to record Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions seeking international support and to facilitate matching of finance, technology and capacity-building support to these actions. Once support has been provided they are called internationally supported mitigation actions (ISMAs), that will be subject to international measurement, reporting and verification.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome, Finance
It takes note of the collective commitment by developed countries to provide new and additional resources, including forestry and investments through international institutions, approaching US$30 billion for the period 2010–-2012 and recognizes that developed country parties commit, in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation, to a goal of mobilizing jointly US$100 billion per year by 2020 to address the needs of developing countries.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome, Finance
It decides to establish a Green Climate Fund, to be designated as an operating entity of the financial mechanism of the Convention. Also decides that the Fund shall be governed by a board of 24 members; the trustee shall administer the assets of the Green Climate Fund only for the purpose of, and in accordance with, the relevant decisions of the Green Climate Fund Board.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome, Finance
The conference establishes a Standing Committee under the Conference of the Parties to assist the Conference of the Parties in exercising its functions with respect to the financial mechanism


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome, Technology
In technology development and transfer, decides to establish a Technology Mechanism, which will consist of a Technology Executive Committee  and a Climate Technology Centre and Network. The Climate Technology Centre and Network and the Technology Executive Committee shall relate so as to promote coherence and synergy. The Technology Executive Committee shall further implement the framework of the Convention (technology transfer framework) and Committee shall comprise 20 expert members. The Climate Technology Centre shall facilitate a Network of national, regional, sectoral and international technology networks, organizations and initiatives


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome, Capacity-building
It reaffirms that capacity-building is essential to enable developing country parties to participate fully in addressing the climate change challenges, and to implement effectively their commitments under the Convention.


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome, Kyoto Protocol
The Outcome of the work of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Further Commitments for Annex I Parties under the Kyoto Protocol at its fifteenth session:


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome, Reactions
The agreement includes a "Green Climate Fund," proposed to be worth $100 billion a year by 2020, to assist poorer countries in financing emission reductions and adaptation. There was no agreement on how to extend the Kyoto Protocol, or how the $100 billion a year for the Green Climate Fund will be raised, or whether developing countries should have binding emissions reductions or whether rich countries would have to reduce emissions first. Reuters Environment Correspondent Alister Doyle reported that to most delegates, though they approved it, the agreement "fell woefully short of action needed."


2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Outcome, Reactions
The New York Times described the agreement as  being both a  "major step forward" given that international negotiations had stumbled in recent years, and as being  "fairly modest" as it did not require the changes that scientists say are needed to avoid dangerous climate change. John Vidal, writing in The Guardian, criticised the Cancun agreements for not providing leadership, for not specifying how the proposed climate fund will be financed, and for not stating that countries had to "peak" their emissions within 10 years and then rapidly reduce them for there to be any chance to avert warming. Also criticised were the deferral of decisions on the legal form of and level of emission reductions required. Professor Kevin Anderson described the Cancun accord as "astrology" and stated that the science was suggesting a 4 °C rise in global mean temperature, possibly as early as the 2060s.


2010 United Nations Security Council election
The 2010 United Nations Security Council election was held on 12 October 2010 during the 65th session of the United Nations General Assembly, held at United Nations Headquarters in New York City. The elections were for five non-permanent seats on the UN Security Council for two-year mandates commencing on 1 January 2011. The General Assembly elected Colombia, Germany, India, Portugal, and South Africa.


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Procedure
In accordance with the Security Council's rotation rules, whereby the ten non-permanent UNSC seats rotate among the various regional blocs into which UN member states traditionally divide themselves for voting and representation purposes, the five available seats are allocated as follows:


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Term
The five members will serve on the Security Council for the 2011–12 period.


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Term
For the WEOG seats Germany, along with Canada, and Portugal, stood for election. India ran uncontested for the Asian seat since Kazakhstan stood aside. South Africa also ran uncontested for the African seat after being endorsed by the African Union. After dropping out to Brazil in the 2009 election, Colombia also ran unopposed.


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Elected members
Africa: South Africa replaces UgandaAsia: India replaces JapanGRULAC: Colombia replaces MexicoWEOG: Germany and Portugal replace Austria and Turkey


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Results
The results in the three uncontested seats were as follows: India received 187 votes, South Africa 182 votes and Colombia 186 votes.


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Results
For the two Western European and Others Seats the results were as follows:


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Results, Round 2
Following this round of voting Canada officially withdrew its candidacy.


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Results, Round 3
Some states continued to vote for Canada, as withdrawal of candidacy is not binding and member states may vote for any state they please. However, the withdrawal was sufficient to ensure the election of Portugal by a two-thirds majority.


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Reactions, Canada
Canadian Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon acknowledged that foreign policy under the Conservative government had played a role in the loss – even as he said that policy is based on sound democratic and human rights principles. "We will not back down from our principles that form the basis of our great country, and we will continue to pursue them on the international stage," Cannon said. "Some would even say that, because of our attachment to those values, we lost a seat on the council. If that's the case, then so be it."


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Reactions, Canada
Blame was also shifted toward Liberal Party of Canada leader Michael Ignatieff  for the defeat by the Conservative Party of Canada, though he rejected the blame as "ridiculous". "The blame game is a sign of a government that is unwilling to absorb the lessons of defeat." He, along with his foreign affairs critic Bob Rae, also said Prime Minister Stephen Harper had "paid the price" for a change in the foreign relations of Canada away from the traditional path of the Liberal and Progressive Conservative governments since the second half of the twentieth century.


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Reactions, Canada
They cited Canada's tradition of peacekeeping missions, a balance in policies toward Israel and Palestine, aid and economic links with Africa and multilateral work on the environment and other global issues. One former diplomat said "We've suffered a loss that we haven't previously suffered in our foreign policy. It is a significant defeat for Canadian policy. We presented ourselves for a seat and the membership found us inadequate."


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Reactions, Canada
In a December 2011 interview, Canada's new foreign affairs minister John Baird attributed the failure to win a seat to principled positions taken by Canada on certain international issues: “Maybe if we had shut up, and not talked about gay rights in Africa; maybe if we had shut up and been more quiet about our concerns about Sri Lanka; maybe if we hadn't been so vocally against the deplorable human rights record in Iran, maybe Iran might have voted for us.... But we didn't and I don't think we regret anything. Iran probably voted against us; North Korea probably voted against us; Gadhafi probably voted against us. I think those are all badges of honour.”


2010 United Nations Security Council election, Reactions, India
India's envoy to the UN, Hardeep Singh Puri said "We have worked hard ... we have pushed for every single vote".


2010 United Soccer Leagues
The 2010 season is the 24th season played by the United Soccer Leagues. Season titles will be contested by 6 professional men's clubs in the USL Second Division, 29 professional and amateur women's clubs in the W-League, and 68 professional and amateur men's teams in the USL Premier Development League.


2010 United Soccer Leagues
The remaining USL First Division teams that did not break away to form the North American Soccer League, as well as the NASL teams, will play in the D2 Pro League this year.


2010 United Soccer Leagues
The Second Division season started on April 17 with 3 games: Charleston Battery at Charlotte Eagles, Richmond Kickers hosting Harrisburg City Islanders, and Pittsburgh Riverhounds at Real Maryland Monarchs. The season closed on August 14 with Pittsburgh at Harrisburg, Real Maryland at Richmond, and Charleston hosting Charlotte.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska
An election was held on November 2, 2010, to determine the U.S. Representative for Alaska's at-large congressional district, which includes the entire state of Alaska. Don Young, the incumbent and a member of the Republican Party, was re-elected to a twentieth term to serve in the 112th Congress from January 3, 2011, until January 3, 2013. A primary election was held on August 24, 2010.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska, Background
Alaska's population was 66 percent white, 13 percent Native American, 6 percent Hispanic and 4 percent Asian (see Race and ethnicity in the United States Census); 91 percent were high school graduates and 27 percent had received a bachelor's degree or higher. Its median income was $66,293. In the 2008 presidential election, Alaska gave 59 percent of its vote to Republican nominee John McCain and 38 percent to Democratic nominee Barack Obama. Republican Don Young was the incumbent. Young was re-elected with 50 percent of the vote in 2008.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska, Campaign
In 2010 Young's opponent in the general election was Democratic nominee Harry Crawford, a member of the Alaska House of Representatives and former ironworker. John R. Cox and Sheldon Fisher, a former telecommunications executive, also sought the Republican nomination. Andrew Halcro, a former member of the state House of Representatives who unsuccessfully tan for Governor of Alaska in 2006, said in September 2009 that he would challenge Young in the 2010 Republican primary, but in February 2010 said he was reconsidering his decision.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska, Campaign
Gabrielle LeDoux, a former member of the state House of Representatives who sought the Republican nomination in the district in 2008, said in July 2009 that she would not run in 2010 if Young sought re-election. Crawford was unopposed for the Democratic nomination. Ethan Berkowitz, the former minority leader of the state House of Representatives who unsuccessfully challenged Young as the Democratic nominee in 2008, said in December of that year that he was considering running again, but said in July 2009 that he would not run.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska, Campaign
Young raised $1,001,015 and spent $887,310. Crawford raised $240,439 and spent $235,571. Fisher raised $177,981 and spent the same amount.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska, Campaign
In a poll of 710 voters, conducted by Public Policy Polling (PPP) on January 27 and 28, 2010, Young led with 49 percent to Crawford's 34 percent, while 17 percent were undecided. A PPP poll of 1,306 likely voters, conducted on August 27 and 28, 2010, found that Young had the support of 55 percent while 36 percent favored Crawford and 8 percent were undecided. In a poll of 573 registered and likely voters, conducted between September 23 and 27, 2010, by Ivan Moore Research, Young led with 65 percent to Crawford's 32 percent, while 4 percent were undecided. A poll of 1,678 likely voters, conducted by PPP on October 9 and 10, 2010, found Young leading Crawford by 58 percent to 36 percent, while 6 percent were undecided.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska, Campaign
Prior to the election FiveThirtyEight's forecast gave Young a 100 percent chance of winning and projected that he would receive 65 percent of the vote to Crawford's 35 percent. On election day Young was re-elected with 69 percent to Crawford's 31 percent. Young was again re-elected in 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in American Samoa
The United States House of Representatives election in American Samoa, which will contest American Samoa lone At-large congressional district, was held on November 2, 2010. The non-voting delegate to the United States House of Representatives is elected for two-year terms; whoever is elected will serve in the 112th Congress from January 3, 2011 until January 3, 2013.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in American Samoa
Incumbent Eni Faleomavaega of the Democratic Party has held the seat since 1989.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in American Samoa, Candidates
All elections in American Samoa are officially non-partisan, though candidates do identify with a particular political party. Three candidates sought election for Delegate to the U.S. House in 2010.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in American Samoa, Candidates
Incumbent Rep. Eni Faleomavaega, who identifies with the Democratic Party, is seeking re-election. He was re-elected in the 2008 House election with 60% of the vote.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in American Samoa, Candidates
Amata Coleman Radewagen, American Samoa's Republican National Committeewoman who has challenged Faleomavaega in the past, ran again for the seat.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in American Samoa, Candidates
Tuika Tuika, an accountant and former candidate for Governor of American Samoa in the 2008 gubernatorial election, is the third candidate in the election.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in American Samoa, Candidates
In early February 2010, independent Fualaau Rosie Tago Lancaster had announced that she would seek second bid to become American Samoa's delegate to the United States House. Lancaster announced that she will run on a platform promising an emphasis on Veterans issues, better communication and transportation links with the Manu'a Islands, education, healthcare and economic development. Lancaster came in third in the 2008 House election, receiving 5% of the popular vote. However, she did not appear on the general election ballot in November.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in American Samoa, General election
Incumbent Rep. Eni Faleomavaega won election to a 12th two-year term in office, taking 6,895 ballots, or 56.3% of the total vote.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in American Samoa, General election
Aumua Amata, who had previously run in 2008, came in second place with 4,438 votes, or 40.5%. Aumua won several election precincts in American Samoa, running especially strong in the Manua Islands.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in American Samoa, General election
Tuika Tuika placed third with 357 ballots, or 3.3% of the vote.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Delaware
The 2010 United States House of Representatives election in Delaware was held on November 2, 2010 to determine who would represent the state of Delaware in the United States House of Representatives for the 112th United States Congress. Democratic nominee former Lieutenant Governor, John Carney defeated Republican nominee Glen Urquhart, giving Delaware an all Democratic congressional delegation for the first time since before the 1942 midterms. This is the first open seat election since 1992 and only the second since 1976.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Delaware, Overview
The state of Delaware is completely contained in a single at-large district. The district has a Cook Partisan Voting Index of D+7. Since 1993, the district had been represented by Republican Michael Castle.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Delaware, Overview
Castle announced in 2009 he would run for the United States Senate seat held by Ted Kaufman (D) who had been appointed to the seat when his predecessor, Joe Biden (D), resigned to become Vice President. Castle was defeated by Christine O'Donnell in the Delaware Republican Senate primary.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Delaware, Democratic primary, Results
Carney announced his candidacy on April 15, 2009 and was unopposed in the primary after Scott Spencer, a transportation consultant, dropped out.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Delaware, Campaign
According to a September 2010 poll by Fairleigh Dickinson University's PublicMind, "likely voters in Delaware split 45%-40% on whether they prefer[ed] to have the U.S. Congress controlled by the Democratic Party or the Republican Party, suggesting that the First State's open congressional seat might be hotly contested," yet in the same poll, Carney led Urquhart by 51%-36%. Peter Woolley, the poll director, remarked that "candidates matter, not just parties" and that in Delaware candidates matter "more than in most states."


2010 United States House of Representatives election in District of Columbia
The 2010 congressional election for the Delegate from the District of Columbia was held on November 2, 2010. The winner of the race is to serve in the 112th Congress from January 3, 2011, until January 3, 2013.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in District of Columbia
The non-voting delegate to the United States House of Representatives from the District of Columbia is elected for two-year terms.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in District of Columbia, Candidates
Eleanor Holmes Norton, a Democrat, has held the seat since 1991 and was up for reelection in 2010. Her Democratic opponent in the primary election was Douglass Sloan, who is only the second candidate to ever challenge Holmes Norton in a primary since she took office in 1991.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in District of Columbia, Candidates
Missy Reilly Smith, an anti-abortion activist, was the Republican candidate. She ran unopposed in the primary election. Smith caused a controversy by running television ads featuring graphic images of aborted fetuses. Smith herself had undergone two abortions in the past.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in District of Columbia, Primary
The primary election took place on for September 14 for both the offices of Delegate and Shadow Representative. Incumbent Eleanor Norton Holmes faced only the second primary challenge since she took office in 1991.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Guam
The 2010 Congressional election for the delegate from Guam's at-large congressional district was held on November 2, 2010.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Guam
The non-voting delegate to the United States House of Representatives from Guam is elected for two-year terms. Incumbent Democrat Madeleine Bordallo sought re-election in 2010 and was unopposed in the race. The election coincided with the 2010 midterm elections.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Guam, Primary election
Bordallo was unopposed in the Democratic primary, which was held September 4, 2010.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Guam, General election
Bordallo was unopposed in the general election, which was held November 2, 2010.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Montana
The 2010 congressional elections in Montana was held on November 2, 2010, and determined who would represent the state of Montana in the United States House of Representatives. Montana has one seat in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States Census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; the elected will serve in the 112th Congress from January 3, 2011 until January 3, 2013.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in North Dakota
The 2010 House election in North Dakota took place on November 2, 2010 to elect the state's at-large Representative to the United States House of Representatives. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; this election was for the 112th Congress from January 3, 2011 until January 3, 2013. North Dakota has one seat in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States Census.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in North Dakota
The election was held concurrently with the United States Senate elections of 2010 (including one in North Dakota), the United States House elections in other states and various state and local elections.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in North Dakota, Background
Despite Republican dominance at the presidential level in North Dakota, which has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since 1964, as well as state and local elections, Democrats achieved several consecutive victories in Congressional elections in the state since the 1980s. Democrats had held the state's at-large House seat since 1981 when Incumbent Republican Representative Mark Andrews retired from the House of Representatives to run for and subsequently win election to the Senate in 1980.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in North Dakota, Background
In 1986, Democrats gained North Dakota's Class III U.S. Senate seat in addition to having already held the state's Class I seat, thus giving Democrats control of both its U.S. Senate seats for the first time in North Dakota's history. From 1987 to 2011, North Dakota had a completely Democratic Congressional delegation.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in North Dakota, Background
Since his first election in 1992, incumbent Democrat Earl Pomeroy had usually won reelection by comfortable margins. However with Democrats fighting in a much tougher political environment in 2010, Republicans planned on putting forward a serious challenge. Republicans running against him included state Public Service Commissioner Kevin Cramer, state Representative Rick Berg, and former University of Mary football coach Paul Schaffner. Pomeroy was likely more vulnerable than usual due to his support for the Democratic House Healthcare bill, which 64% of North Dakotans opposed, and President's Obama declining job approval ratings in the state (of which 39% approve and 58% disapprove, with 45% strongly disapproving).


2010 United States House of Representatives election in North Dakota, Polling
†Internal poll (Garin-Hart-Yang for Pomeroy and Public Opinion Strategies for Berg)


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Northern Mariana Islands
The 2010 Congressional election in the Northern Mariana Islands occurred on November 2, 2010 and elected the territory's Delegate to the United States House of Representatives. Representatives and non-voting Delegates are elected for two-year terms; the elected will serve in the 112th Congress from January 3, 2011 until January 3, 2013.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Northern Mariana Islands
These elections were held concurrently with the United States Senate elections of 2010, the United States House elections in other states and territories, and various territorial and local elections.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Northern Mariana Islands, Background
Gregorio Sablan, the first delegate from the Northern Mariana Islands to the House of Representatives, ran for re-election. Sablan was challenged by Covenant Party candidate Joe Camacho, an attorney and former Floor Leader in the Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives. The local Republican Party candidate was Juan N. Babauta, the former Governor of the Northern Mariana Islands. There was also one Democratic (CNMI) challenger, Jesus Borja, a former lieutenant governor.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Northern Mariana Islands, Background
The race was considered to be highly competitive given Sablan's vulnerability, having been elected by less than a quarter of the vote in 2008, the strong Republican political environment, and the number of strong challengers.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in South Dakota
The 2010 United States House of Representatives election in South Dakota took place on Tuesday, November 2, 2010. Voters selected a representative for their single At-Large district, who run on a statewide ballot. On June 8, 2010, the Republicans nominated Kristi Noem, Assistant Majority Leader of the South Dakota House of Representatives and the Democrats nominated the incumbent Stephanie Herseth Sandlin. In the general election, Noem defeated Herseth Sandlin, winning 48.1 percent of the vote to 45.9 percent for Herseth Sandlin.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in South Dakota, Issues
During the general election campaign, Republicans criticized Herseth Sandlin's voting record. They also criticized her lobbyist husband's list of clients, noting that the companies had interests in legislation that would come before Congress. Noem pointed out that the National Association of Broadcasters paid Herseth Sandlin's husband, Max Sandlin, a lobbyist and former Congressman, $320,000 during the years 2008 and 2009 to lobby on their behalf, including a bill co-sponsored by Herseth Sandlin called the Local Radio Freedom Act. Herseth Sandlin responded that Noem's example was "laughable".


2010 United States House of Representatives election in South Dakota, Issues
The Rapid City Journal editorial board stated that Herseth Sandlin should not be laughing at a legitimate concern. Roll Call called the Republican effort an attempt "to stoke anti-Beltway emotions". Herseth Sandlin's campaign responded that she did not allow family members to lobby her or her staff. According to a Washington attorney, Herseth Sandlin's policy seemed compliant with House ethics rules that had been tightened in 2007, though Republicans charged Herseth Sandlin was violating the spirit of the conflict interest rules.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in South Dakota, Issues
"The Sunlight Foundation, Public Citizen and other watchdog groups are highly critical of Herseth Sandlin and other Members whose relatives work Congressional corridors", according to Roll Call. The groups have said the House ethics rules should be comparable to the Senate's rules and should ban all lobbying "under the Dome" by relatives of Members.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in South Dakota, Polling
On October 24, 2010, Nate Silver of The New York Times' FiveThirtyEight.com blog predicted that there was a 69.9% chance that Noem would defeat Sandlin.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in South Dakota, Fundraising
The race saw each candidate spend over $1.75 million and was the first in Herseth Sandlin's career where she was outspent.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in South Dakota, Fundraising
Funding from political parties and interest groups totaled $2,651,621 for the race, with 78% benefiting Noem. Groups supporting Herseth-Sandlin included the DCCC and CUNA. Noem was supported by the American Action Network, the NRCC and the American Future Fund.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in United States Virgin Islands
The 2010 Congressional election for Delegate to the United States House of Representatives from the United States Virgin Islands was held on November 2, 2010.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in United States Virgin Islands
The non-voting delegate to the House of Representatives from the United States Virgin Islands is elected for two-year terms. The winner of the race served in the 112th Congress from January 3, 2011 until January 3, 2013. The election was part of the 2010 U.S. House of Representatives election and coincided with other local elections in the Virgin Islands, including the 2010 gubernatorial race.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in United States Virgin Islands, Election, Candidates
Incumbent U.S. Virgin Islands Delegate Donna Christian-Christensen, a Democrat, formally announced her campaign for re-election on Sunday, July 25, 2010. Christensen, who had held the seat since 1997, ran unopposed in 2008. In 2010, Christensen was challenged by Republican Vincent Emile Danet and two independent candidates – Guillaume Mimoun and Jeffrey Moorhead, a Saint Croix attorney.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in United States Virgin Islands, Election, Election results
Incumbent Del. Donna Christian-Christensen easily won re-election to another term, taking 18,584, or 71.2% of the total votes cast in the election. Independent candidate Jeffrey Moorhead placed second with 4,880 votes. Republican Vincent Danet came in third place with 2,223 votes, while independent candidate Guillaume Mimoun came in fourth place with 397 votes.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont
The 2010 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont was held on November 2, 2010 and determined who would represent the state of Vermont in the United States House of Representatives. Democratic Congressman Peter Welch decided to run for a third term in Congress, facing Republican Paul D. Beaudry and two independent candidates. Welch won over his three opponents by a healthy margin, which allowed him to represent Vermont in the 112th Congress.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Wyoming
The 2010 House election in Wyoming was held on November 2, 2010 and determined who would represent the state of Wyoming in the United States House of Representatives. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; the elected served in the 112th Congress from January 4, 2011 until January 3, 2013. The election coincided with the 2010 midterm elections.


2010 United States House of Representatives election in Wyoming
Wyoming has one seat in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States Census. Its 2008-2010 congressional House delegation consisted of one Republican.


2010 United States House of Representatives election ratings
The 2010 United States House of Representatives elections were held on November 2, 2010, with early voting taking place in some states in the weeks preceding that date. Voters chose representatives from all 435 congressional districts across each of the 50 U.S. states. Non -voting delegates from the District of Columbia and four of the five inhabited U.S. territories were also elected. These midterm elections took place nearly halfway through the first term of Democratic President Barack Obama. The winners served in the 112th United States Congress, with seats apportioned among the states based on the 2000 United States census. On Election Day, Democrats had held a House majority since January 2007 as a result of the 2006 elections.


2010 United States House of Representatives election ratings, Predictions on overall outcome
These were predictions of the outcome of the 2010 United States House of Representatives elections.


2010 United States House of Representatives election ratings, Election ratings
Several sites and individuals publish ratings of competitive seats. The seats listed below were considered competitive (not "safe" or "solid") by at least one of the rating groups. These ratings are based upon factors such as the strength of the incumbent (if the incumbent is running for re-election), the strength of the candidates, and the partisan history of the district (the Cook Partisan Voting Index is one example of this metric). Each rating describes the likelihood of a given outcome in the election.


2010 United States House of Representatives election ratings, Election ratings
The following table contains the final ratings of the competitiveness of selected races according to noted political analysts. Races which were considered safe for the incumbent's party are not included. Incumbents who did not run for re-election have parentheses around their name.


2010 United States House of Representatives elections
The 2010 United States House of Representatives elections were held on November 2, 2010, as part of the 2010 midterm elections during President Barack Obama's first term in office. Voters of the 50 U.S. states chose 435 U.S. Representatives. Also, voters of the U.S. territories, commonwealths, and the District of Columbia chose their non-voting delegates. U.S. Senate elections and various state and local elections were held on the same date.


2010 United States House of Representatives elections
Republicans regained control of the chamber they had lost in the 2006 midterm elections, picking up a net total of 63 seats and erasing the gains Democrats made in 2006 and 2008. Although the sitting U.S. President's party usually loses seats in a midterm election, the 2010 election resulted in the highest losses by a party in a House midterm election since 1938, and the largest House swing since 1948.


2010 United States House of Representatives elections
Republicans made their largest gain in House seats since 1938. Three Democratic committee chairman were defeated, Transportation chairman Jim Oberstar of Minnesota, Armed Services chairman Ike Skelton of Missouri, and most notably Budget chairman John Spratt of South Carolina. Democrats made three pick-ups, winning an open seat in Delaware and defeating Republican incumbents in Hawaii and Louisiana.


2010 United States House of Representatives elections
The heavy Democratic Party losses in 2010 were attributed to anger at President Obama, opposition to the Affordable Care Act and American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, large budget deficits, and the weak economy.


2010 United States House of Representatives elections, Background
Following the 2006 elections, Democrats took control of the House as well as the Senate. In the 2008 elections, which coincided with Democrat Barack Obama's victory over Republican John McCain for the presidency, Democrats increased their majorities in both chambers. Of the 435 congressional districts, 242 were carried by Obama, while 193 voted for McCain. Of the districts Obama won, 34 elected a Republican to the House, while 49 of the districts McCain won elected a Democrat.


2010 United States House of Representatives elections, Background, Republican gains
The Republicans' 63-seat pickup in the House to take control of that chamber, as well as their gain of six Senate seats, signified a dramatic rollback of recent Democratic gains. In the election, Republicans won their greatest number of House seats since 1946. This has been attributed to the continued economic recession, as well as President Obama's controversial stimulus and health care reform bills. Republicans also took control of 29 of the 50 state governorships and gained 690 seats in state legislatures, to hold their greatest number since the 1928 elections.