Factors affecting party success

Question 1

List five reasons why small parties fail

Answer 1

• They lack funding
• The electoral system could discriminate against them
• They lack media exposure
• They lack community organisation
• People consider voting for them to be a wasted vote

Question 2

How can small parties overcome their lack of funding?

Answer 2

They can find wealthy benefactors to support them, as occured with UKIP after 2010

Question 3

How can smaller parties overcome the fact that the electoral system may discriminate against them?

Answer 3

• PR helps smaller parties in devolved assemblies
• If a party develops concentrated geographical support, it can breakout in a region, as happened with the SNP

Question 4

How can smaller parties overcome the fact that they often lack media exposure?

Answer 4

A strong, charismatic leader can help gain public support, as occured with Caroline Lucas for the Greens and Nigel Farage for UKIP and the Brexit party

Question 5

How can smaller parties overcome the fact that they often lack organisation in communities?

Answer 5

• They can gain widespead support with populist ideas, like UKIP did
• They can build up good community teams and successfully compete in local government elections, which will then help in subsequent general elections

Question 6

How can smaller parties overcome the fact that many consider a vote for them to be a wasted vote?

Answer 6

They could advocate for a PR system, in which fewer votes will be wasted

Question 7

Why is leadership crucial for party success?

Answer 7

Voters respond to the quality of a party leader, as, atleast in the case of the main two parties, they are a potential PM

Question 8

Outline six key attributes that voters look for in a party leader

Answer 8

• Experience
• Decisiveness
• Ability to lead
• Media image
• Intelligence
• Apparent honesty

Question 9

Give some examples of recent leaders who have damaged the prospects of their party

Answer 9

Gordon Brown, Ed Miliband, Nick Clegg

Question 10

Give some examples of leaders who have enhanced their party’s fortunes

Answer 10

Blair and Thatcher

Question 11

Which two minor party leaders made a strong media impression in the lead up to the 2015 general election?

Answer 11

Sturgeon and Farage

Question 12

Which popular, strong leader took the Lib Dems to their most successful result in 2005?

Answer 12

Charles Kennedy

Question 13

How did Farage help UKIP?

Answer 13

He was a master of media, ensuring that they were constantly in the news

Question 14

How did Sturgeon help the SNP?

Answer 14

She enjoyed very positive public approval ratings in the opinion polls

Question 15

What type of party do political commentators often say has no chance of being elected?

Answer 15

A disunited one

Question 16

How was unity crucial in the 80s?

Answer 16

The conservatives was united behind Thatcher but labour was split between its left and right wings. This resulted in two huge victories for the conservatives in 83 and 87, after the labour party did actually split in 1981

Question 17

How was unity crucial during the new 1997 election?

Answer 17

The labour party was totally united around Blair and the idea of new labour. Major’s conservatives had been wracked by internal division, mainly over the issue of Europe. The result was a crushing victory for labour

Question 18

How was unity important during the 2019 general election?

Answer 18

Moderate conservatives were removed from the party and candidates were made sign a pledge committed to getting Brexit done. This meant the conservatives were able to unify around the central issue of Brexit, while the labour party struggled with divisions over Brexit, antisemitism and the radical nature of its manifesto

Question 19

What does research suggest about the impact of newspapers?

Answer 19

That they only reinforce political affiliations and do not change minds

Question 20

What can the media influence politically?

Answer 20

The portrayal of different parties

Question 21

What happened in the 2017 general election that discredits the idea that the media have a substantial influence on voting patterns?

Answer 21

The conservatives lost their commons majority, even after being backed by most newspapers

Question 22

How can TV debates influence the political dynamic, even if they have to be impartial?

Answer 22

They still give exposure to party leaders

Question 23

Give a recent example of a party leader’s performance in TV debates having an influence

Answer 23

Nick Clegg’s performances were widely praised in 2010

Question 24

How did TV debates effect the outcome of the 2017 general election?

Answer 24

Theresa May’s refusal to participate and Corbyn’s surprisingly good performance helped shift the media perceptions of the two leaders

Question 25

Why has their been a growth in the role of social media as a factor for party success?

Answer 25

It provides a key way for parties to promote themselves and for critics to attack politicians they oppose. It allows politicians and political actors to speak to the public directly. It also allows parties to bypass many of the rules about media coverage

Question 26

What are the downsides to social media becoming a part of politics?

Answer 26

• It is difficult to control
• Its effects and importance are difficult to quantify
• It can be used to target voters in intrusive and forceful ways

Question 27

How influential is the media, unity and leadership in determining electoral outcomes?

Answer 27

They are not decisive, but, put together, they are influential. However, it is still the performance of government and the policies of the opposition parties that determine electoral outcomes

Question 28

List the arguements the support the media is influential during elections?

Answer 28

• The media is the prism through which public perceptions of parties are created
• The winning party usually has the support of most print newspapers
• Since 2010, leadership debates have become key moments of electoral campaigns
• Parties are dedicating increased resources to social media to collect data and target voters in increasingly sophisticated ways
• Leaders spend time cultivating positive media images

Question 29

List some arguements that support the case that the media is not influential

Answer 29

• Influential media tends to reflect, rather than lead, attitudes to parties
• Corbyn performed well in the 2017 general election despite nearly all parties opposing him
• There is little evidence to suggest that leadership debates have affected public perception or change minds
• Social media tends to act as an echo chamber and rarely changes our attitudes towards parties
• Other factors, like leadership and policies, often prove more influential