The members of the 8th General Assembly of Newfoundland were elected in the Newfoundland general election held in May 1861. The general assembly sat from 1861 to 1865. At this time Newfoundland was a British colony unto itself.

Hugh Hoyles, leader of the Conservative Party, had been appointed premier and invited to form a government in March after his predecessor was dismissed by the governor. Hoyles' government was defeated in a non-confidence