Factors affecting party success Flashcards
State the factors affecting party success
Policies Campaign Party unity Leaders Media Wider political context Opposition
Factors affecting party success (explain and example): Policies
A party’s policies should be the most important factor when deciding how to vote
E.g. Thatcher’s radical agenda in 1979 enthused the country, as did Blair’s in 1997. In a different way, May’s policies in 2017 played a significant role in the election
Factors affecting party success (explain and example): Campaign
Rarely make significant difference to election outcome UNLESS polls are tight
2017 broke this pattern
May was 20 points ahead in the polls when calling the election (April 2017). By June, she had lost her parliamentary majority and was seen as an ineffective leader and PM
Factors affecting party success (explain and example): Party unity
Disunity in political parties is damaging. Voters like to feel that the party they vote for has a clear vision for governing
E.g. Conservatives under Major, Blairite/Brownite split in New Labour and Conservatives under May are all examples of the damage that governing parties at war within themselves can do
Factors affecting party success (explain and example): Leaders
Charismatic leaders are often trusted more by voter, which may result in voters ignoring other factors
E.g. Leaders who like “strong” and “fresh” such as Blair in 1997, tend to be successful, whereas leaders who appear weak, such as Ed Milliband often struggle to get voters’ attention
Factors affecting party success (explain and example): Media
Had been said if you have the support of The Sun, you have a good chance of winning an election
Social media has taken on the older media and is seen as a force to be reckoned with (seen in 2017)
Factors affecting party success (explain and example): Wider political context
If a party has been in power for a long time, brand fatigue may set in and governing parties are likely to make mistakes and lose credibility with voters
E.g, in the run up to the 1979 and 2010 elections, the governing party had gained a poor reputation for economic competence, and voters reacted badly to this
Electorate doesn’t like politicians to engage in sleazy activities, whether it be sexual, financial, or expenses scandals
E.g. in the 1992, 1997 and 2010 elections, this had an impact on the result
Factors affecting party success (explain and example): Opposition
Quality of the opposition impacts success of party
The opposition has less experience than the government, which holds the experience and status of office but the gov has a track record, which a skildul opposition can exploit to their own advantage
E.g. Labour’s 1997 success was partly down to their ability to exploit the Major gov’s weaknesses, and theey ran a slick campaign to become elected
