It was a toughly contested election. Hildyard was supported, according to the University of Nottingham, by the 4th Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyme "in spite of the fact that Newcastle's son, the Earl of Lincoln, was his opponent.
The election was fiercely contested, according to the University of Nottingham, with Hildyard receiving support from the 4th Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyme despite his opponent being the Earl of Lincoln, who was also a son of Newcastle.