1979 general election

Question 1

Describe the labour government that had come to power in 1974

Answer 1

It came to power with a small majority, and had to endure multiple crises and the loss of MPs

Question 2

What had happened by 1979?

Answer 2

Public opinion had turned against labour to such an extent that Margaret Thatcher was able to secure a clear majority in the general election

Question 3

How many seats were won by the conservatives and labour?

Answer 3

Conservatives - 339
Labour - 269

Question 4

What was the seat change for the conservatives and labour from 1974?

Answer 4

• Conservatives - +63
• Labour - -50

Question 5

What % of the votes were won by the conservatives and labour?

Answer 5

• Conservatives - 44%
• Labour - 37%

Question 6

How did the popular vote change for the conservatives and labour from 1974?

Answer 6

Conservatives - 8.1%
Labour - -2.3%

Question 7

How did demographic issues impact this election?

Answer 7

There was a sharp decline in the number of people describing themselves as working class - which may have eroded labour’s vote. The size of the middle class was also growing, which may have helped the conservatives

Question 8

How did trade unions become the key factor in this election?

Answer 8

There had been a wide range of strikes by public sector workers in the winter 1978-79, leading to unemptied bins, a shortage of public transport and power shortages. It became known as the winter of discontent. Many saw the conservatives as better placed to control this unwieldy trade union power

Question 9

Why was the economic stance of the two parties an important part of this election?

Answer 9

Unemployment and inflation was high and growth was low. The conservative response was to curb trade union powers and return to free markets. The middle classes were especially attracted to these policies.

Question 10

How important were party leaders in this election?

Answer 10

The then labour PM, James Callaghan, had greater popularity than Thatcher. He was seen as normal and reliable where Thatcher was seen as distant and posh. Thatcher had been an unpopular shadow education secretary. Some members of the electorate may have been unwilling to vote for a female PM. The conservatives can therefore be seen as winning in spite of their leader

Question 11

How was turnout significant?

Answer 11

It was down on past trends due to abstention from the working class and trade union members, who were labour’s core voters. Opinion polls showed an increasingly close race so could have helped boost conservative turnout

Question 12

How did the media play a greater role in the campaign?

Answer 12

First election where the parties focused on using the media as part of their campaign. Press conferences were timed to provide stories for the midday news, afternoon walkabouts were designed to coincide with the early evening news, while major speeches were timed to make the evening news

Question 13

What type of campaigns did both parties operate so as to not upset voters?

Answer 13

Opinion polls showed the public did not like adversarial campaigns, so the parties avoided attacking one another, especially after the conservatives were criticised for an insult-laden attack early on. Both parties worked to keep their radical wings silent

Question 14

What was the result of the campaigns?

Answer 14

Callaghan won the campaign and came across as the more popular leader, but it was not enough to stop a conservative victory

Question 15

How were polcies important?

Answer 15

The most important policies were the conservative plans to curb trade union power.

Question 16

Describe regional voting in this election

Answer 16

All areas swung towards the conservatives, with this swing much more pronounced in the south

Question 17

Describe class voting in this election

Answer 17

The conservatives remained dominant amongst AB and C1 voters. Labour won the C2 and DE vote, but the conservatives gained swings of 11% and 9% across these brackets

Question 18

Describe gendered voting in this election

Answer 18

Men were evenly split between the two main parties, while women showed a slight preference for the conservatives

Question 19

Describe age voting in this election

Answer 19

Labour won among the 18-24 age group, but the conservatives won across all other age groups Labour support declined most among the 35-54 age group

Question 20

Describe ethnicity voting in this election

Answer 20

There is a lack of data as BAME voters made up less than 5% of the population, so parties and polling stations did not think they were important enough to cover

Question 21

Describe the outcome of the election in the long term

Answer 21

The conservatives would remain in government for the next 18 years