1997 general election Flashcards
stats (%) for labour cons and lib dem
Labour: 43.2%
Conservative: 30.7%
Lib Dem: 16.8%
how did Labour manage to gain more votes?
they adopted more centrist policies, which appealed more to the middle class, which were part of the conservatives’ core vote, and the young were also encouraged to vote
what are some other factors that led to labour winning?
- the conservative party had been in power for 18 years
- the conservatives had a deep economic recession in the early 1990s, which questioned their competence
- labour appeared to be a younger, fresher party united around the ‘third way’
what impact did party leaders have on the 1997 election? give an example
John Major appeared to be grey unexcited and weak, whereas Tony Blair was ‘ young and ‘attractive’ with a clear vision , the Lib Dem leader also had a positive image
what was the turnout of the 1997 election? what is its significance?
71%, which is healthy by modern standards, but much lower than typical levels in the past
what were the main political issues at the time? and how did labour respond to this?
NHS and the state of education.
labour promised to make huge investments to better both sectors
Blairs: ‘education education education’
the campaigns focus from the 2 parties
labour:
- media soundbites: ‘education education education’
- pro-Blair campaign
conservative:
- focused on a negative anti-labour campaign
what policies did conservatives focus on
economic recovery
what 4 policies did Labour focus on?
- cut class sizes in schools
- introduce fast track punishment for young offenders
- cut NHS waiting lists
- cut VAT on heating and not raise income tax
what impact did the opinion poll have?
the 1992 opinion poll left people doubting the reliability of them as it was so incorrect, therefore labour didn’t trust the 1997 one
trends in region for 1997 election
- labour gained votes across all regions
- conservatives wiped out in Scotland and Wales and reduced to only 11MPs in london
trends in class for 1997 election
labour gained more votes with C1(+19%) and C2 (+15%), although conservatives still kept their AB voters
trends in gender for 1997 election
labour closed the gender gap, with men and women equally likely to support labour
trends in age for 1997 election
conservatives remained dominant with 65+ but labour won among all other age groups
trends with ethnicity for 1997 election (stats %)
labour: 43% white voters . 70% of BAME voters
conservatives: 32% white vote. 18% BAME voters