Hamilton stood as the
Labour candidate in
Leeds North East at the
1992 general election, coming second with 36.8% of the vote behind the incumbent
Conservative MP
Timothy Kirkhope. Despite having achieved the highest Labour swing in the North of England, the constituency Labour Party voted, by a margin of one vote, in favour of an
all-women shortlist. Hamilton was quoted by
The Independent as saying: Leeds North-East made its selection on 1 July 1995, selecting
Liz Davies, a
barrister and councillor in the
London Borough of Islington. Davies defeated four local women, two of whom were Leeds city councillors. Her selection was vetoed by the
National Executive Committee, allegedly for her
left-wing politics; unhappy with the situation, opponents took out an unsuccessful private prosecution against Hamilton under the Companies Act in connection with his printing business. Hamilton won the subsequent selection process. At the
1997 general election, Hamilton was elected to Parliament as MP for Leeds North East with 49.2% of the vote and a majority of 6,959. He made his
maiden speech on 23 June 1997, in which he explained that his constituency stretches from the inner-city
Leeds district of
Chapeltown all the way out to
Harewood House, the
stately home of
the Earls of Harewood. In Parliament he served as a member of the Administration
Select committee 1997–2001, and has been a member of the
Foreign Affairs Select Committee. Hamilton was re-elected as MP for Leeds North East at the
2001 general election with a decreased vote share of 49.1% and an increased majority of 7,089. In November 2006, Hamilton was a signatory of the
Euston Manifesto and of the statement of principles of the
Henry Jackson Society a
neoconservative foreign policy think tank. In October 2008, Hamilton was the first MP to hold a virtual surgery for constituents who can go to his constituency office while he is in London, and converse via webcam. In 2009, MP Fabian Hamilton faced accusations from
The Daily Telegraph of improperly claiming £3,000 for mortgage expenses on an equity release plan, which is not allowed. Hamilton was again re-elected at the
2010 general election with a decreased vote share of 42.7% and a decreased majority of 4,545. He was a signatory of an open letter to the then-Labour Party leader
Ed Miliband in January 2015 calling on the party to commit to oppose further austerity, take rail franchises back into public ownership and strengthen collective bargaining arrangements. He supports
Labour Friends of Israel and in April 2015 was critical of Ed Miliband's stance on the
Israel-Gaza conflict. Hamilton was again re-elected at the
2015 general election, with an increased vote share of 47.9% and an increased majority of 7,250. On 7 January 2016, Hamilton was appointed a shadow Foreign Minister, outside
the Shadow Cabinet. On 29 June 2016, Hamilton was appointed as Shadow Europe Minister to replace
Pat Glass, who resigned over concerns about Corbyn's leadership. Hamilton resigned a few days later on 4 July 2016, saying that he was troubled by Corbyn's response to the
Chakrabarti Inquiry into anti-Semitism. At the snap
2017 general election, Hamilton was again re-elected with an increased vote share of 63.1% and an increased majority of 16,991. He was re-elected as MP for Leeds North East at the
2019 general election with a decreased vote share of 57.5% and an increased majority of 17,089. Hamilton was again re-elected at the
2024 general election, with a decreased vote share of 51.5% and a decreased majority of 16,083. at the
Royal Armouries in Leeds in 2011 == Personal life ==