1885–1918

The seat was created by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 as one of four divisions of the new parliamentary borough of Islington. The parliamentary borough was coterminous with the civil parish of Islington and each of the four divisions consisted of a number of parish wards used for the election of vestrymen to the incorporated vestry, the local authority for the area.

The East Division consisted of two wards: Canonbury and Highbury.^[1]

1918–1974

Constituencies throughout Great Britain and Ireland were reorganised by the Representation of the People Act 1918. In London, seats were realigned to the boundaries of the metropolitan boroughs that had been created in 1900. The Metropolitan Borough of Islington was divided into four constituencies with the Islington, East seat consisting of three wards as they existed in 1918: Canonbury, Highbury and Mildmay. At the next parliamentary redistribution, prior to the 1950 general election, the seat was unchanged.^[1]

The seat was last contested at the 1970 general election. By the time of the next election in 1974, new constituencies had been drawn based on the London boroughs created in 1965. The London Borough of Islington was divided between three constituencies, with the area of the abolished East seat mostly falling in the new Islington Central constituency.^[1]

Elections in the 1880s

Elections in the 1890s

Elections in the 1900s

Elections in the 1910s

General election 1914–15:

Another general election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;

• Liberal: Edward Smallwood
• Unionist: Philip Pilditch

Elections in the 1920s

Elections in the 1930s

General election 1939–40

Another general election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place, and the following candidates had been selected by the Autumn of 1939:

• Conservative: Thelma Cazalet
• Labour: H C Boyde ^[5]
• Liberal: Cyril Blackburn^[6]

Elections in the 1940s

Elections in the 1950s

Elections in the 1960s

Elections in the 1970s