Case study 2: 1997 GE Flashcards
What was the turnout?
71%
How many seats did LP win?
418
What % of votes did LP win?
43.2%
What were key demographic issues?
CP in power for 18 years and MT forced to resign
L realised that WC was diminishing in size and party could not rely on it to put it into power.
Decided to ‘woo’ the MCs by adopting centrist (third way) policies
Young were persuaded to vote L as it was a break from out of date politics
What were key valence and other issues?
. Image of CP was a tired one and disunited
. Neil Hamilton resigned over allegations of ‘cash for questions’ which created negative publicity for gov
.CP resided over a deep economic recession in the early 1990s, competence was an issue
. L had no economic record and appeared to be a dynamic and fresher party which was united with their ‘third way’
. CP lost reputation for economic competence when it abandoned European exchange rate mechanism on ‘Black Wednesday, resulting in dramatic rise in interest rates
Who were the party leaders?
John Major appeared to be grey, unexciting and weak, whereas Tony Blair was clearly in command, young, attractive, and charismatic with a clear vision
Majors reputation for weak leadership was brilliantly exploited by Blair.
What were political issues?
2 main salient issues: NHS and state of education
both had been in decline and L promised huge investments
Gordon Brown promised to be financially responsible
What was the campaign like?
Alastair Campbell (Blair’s press secretary), ran a tightly disciplined campaign, which showcased Blair as a youthful leader, whose progressive centre-ground policies were in sharp contrast to Majors uninspiring leadership
Campaign song ‘Things can only get better’ reached far beyond Ls core vote
Promise of constitutional reforms resonated with LD voters
What was the significance of turnout?
First signs of long-term decline in turnout emerged
What were other factors affecting the result?
Electorate remembered the recession of the late 1980s and blamed L for it
CP mismanaged the economy and unemployment was very high
LP had support of The Sun which had a circulation of 4 million at the time
What events happened at the time?
John Major presided over a CP divided over the Maastricht Treaty, which transferred large amounts of power to EU and led to much opposition from Eurosceptic backbenchers
What was the outcome of this election?
Massive CP defeat which took 10 yrs to recover from-scored lowest share of pop vote since 1832
LP in power for next 13 yrs
LP increased vote in all social groups by presenting itself as an inclusive progressive party and won most votes in every age group
Still performed best among C2 (50%) and DE(69%) voters
GE was lost by gov?
perception that the Conservative Party was weak, divided, sleazy and corrupt certainly contributed to the election result
Disunited over Europe
Economic recession-incompetent gov
In power for 18yrs and out of touch
John Major scandals series of sex scandals badly damaged the party’s reputation. There were also financial scandals, such as the “Cash for Questions” affair, where two Conservative backbenchers were alleged to have accepted payments via a lobbyist, in return for asking questions in the House of Commons
GE was not lost by gov?
Blair offered ‘NL’ fresh start 3rd way
Blair=charismatic compared to JM
‘Things can only get better@
