Superstars Flashcards
Does age influence voting behaviour?
Yes.
Young people tend to vote for left winged parties and older generations vote for right winged parties. This is due to people’s priorities changing over their life as older p*eople tend to have more wealth so they want to protect it by voting for conservative parties that promise to protect their Money.
For example, on average 56% of under 40s supported Labour in 2019 compared to only 25% who supported the Conservatives according to YouGov. The difference between party support by age groups is very stark suggesting that age is very influential.
No.
Voter turnout also differs depending on age groups so some groups are more influential.
Older people have a much greater voting turnout than younger generations so it’s expected that a democracy will represent their views more. This means young people will struggle to have their views represented in Parliament as so few of them vote.
For example, only 47% of 18-24 year olds voted in the 2019 General Election compared to 74% of 65+ voters. This makes it more likely that older generations will influence the results of elections.
Health Inequalities: Lifestyle choices as a contributor
Some of the health problems that can arise from smoking are lung diseases and cancer, stroke, eye diseases and more, which can all lead to death if left untreated.
eg: ASH Scotland found that over 10% of deaths in Scotland were related to smoking. suggesting that the choice to smoke has clear health consequences and is a contributor to health inequalities.
Holding the Gov to Account: Give an example of how FMQT can be ineffective in holding the Gov to account
In 2018, former Conservative leader Ruth Davidson questioned former FM Nicola Sturgeon on the negative effects reducing school subjects has on pupils, in response, the FM only emphasised the positive factors of education her party have made.
Effect: the Gov can still avoid answering questions by being vague or changing the subject, making FMQT less effective in holding the Gov to account
Health Inequalities: Poverty as a contributor
Those living in poverty struggle to access the healthcare they need & have difficulties in maintaining their health due to poor living conditions
eg: the Resolution Foundation discovered that those in poor quality housing were twice as likely to suffer with poor health and be susceptible to diseases
Health Inequalities: Poverty as a contributor
Those in poverty have limited access to high quality, nutritious food and often resort to fast cheap food as an alternative. This malnutrition lead to issues in development, especially in children, which forces them to stay in the cycle of poverty.
eg: it was discovered that over 50% of homes on Universal Credit experienced food poverty and insecurity in 2023.
Does social class influence voting behaviour?
Yes.
Due to their financial state, people in the same social class tend to share the same political views, therefore they would vote for the same party. Left winged socialist parties such as labour appeal more to the working class and right winged conservatives appeal to upper classes as they promise to protect their wealth.
For example, in the 2017 General Election, Labour won the majority of the vote for social classes D and E with 47% of the vote, while the Conservatives won the majority of the vote for social classes A and B with 47% of the vote. This shows that social class still does have an impact on voting behaviour.
No.
Recently dealignment has become more prevalent in recent times meaning that left wing parties now cannot automatically count on the votes of the working class and vice versus for conservatives and upper class. This is lack of loyalty is due to the rise of third parties.
For example, in the 2019 Election, the Conservatives did much better than expected with lower income C2 and DE voters - 48% of C2, D and E voters chose the Conservative party.
Wealth Inequalities: Unemployment as a Cause
Hano source of income makes it hard for unemployed people to pay for basic needs such as food and shelter and clothing, leading to poverty.
eg, homes in which nobody is employed have a poverty rate of over 50% compared to homes where someone works full time having a poverty rate of only around 10%.
Suggesting that the fewer number of people there are working in a household, the higher the poverty rate is.
One Reason of wealth inequalities
- Ones cause of wealth inequality in the Uk is unemployment. Unemployment is when people are entitled to work but are not cured to working. If you are unemployed, you will not receive wages to pay for the things you need in order to survive. Unemployment causes wealth inequality because when individuals lose their jobs, they face a significant reduction in their financial resources. This can lead to poverty as it is difficult for them to cover basic living expenses, eg- food, healthcare. For example, households where no one is in work have a poverty rate of over 50% compared to households with households where someone works full time having a poverty rate of around 10%. However, unemployment alone does not explain the UK’s high rate of poverty levels. The reality is that areas of the uk with higher levels of employment actually have higher levels of poverty. Unemployment may not be a main cause of wealth inequality because if unemployment was the main cause of poverty, then we would expect to see much smaller levels of poverty in the uk than we do. For example, the uk’s poverty rate of 20% dwarfs the uk’s unemployment rate of 4.3% (September 2023.) this would suggest that although unemployment may cause wealth inequality there clearly more important factors.
Does Print media have and influence on voting behaviour?
Yes.
Newspapers don’t need to be impartial so they can be persuasive as much as they want to get people to vote for their party.
For example, many would highlight that the top 5 read newspapers in the UK all supported the winning party (the Conservatives) in the 2019 election. Combined in 2019 they had a readership of over 5 million compared to the Labour supporting Daily Mirror in 6th place with 500k readers. At first this would suggest that newspapers could indeed be very influential.
No.
Newspapers just feeds the views the reader already has as people normally buy newspapers that reflect the views they already have. This means newspapers don’t change someone’s mind but reinforce it.
For example, in the 2015 and 2017 elections the Sun supported the Conservatives in England but the SNP in Scotland. When they did try to support the Conservatives in 2019 in Scotland, the Conservatives actually lost votes. The evidence in Scotland is that even the most read newspaper has little influence on voting intention and even recent attempts to try have arguably failed.
One way citizens can influence government decision making
- One method citizen can use to influence government decision making is by protesting. Citizens can protest about an issue they feel strongly about. The purpose of a protest is to raise awareness of an issue and try to garner enough support to influence policy makers. Protesting is effective in helping citizens to Influence government decision making because citizens can force the government to reconsider policy decisions or even motivate other government bodies to take further action. For example, in 2023 protests took place around the UK about the UK Governments plans to send refugees to Rwanda. Protestors raised concerns about the well-being and human rights of refugees, resulting in significant criticism of the government whose Plans have ultimately failed to materialise as a result of protests. On the other hand, protesting can be an ineffective way for citizens to influence government decisions making. While protests can draw attention to an issue, they may not directly reach the policymakers who have the authority to make decisions. Elected officials and government agencies might not feel compelled to respond to protests unless they perceive a threat. Protesting is ineffective in helping citizens to influence government decision making because government can choose to ignore the protestors if they feel their wishes are not aligned with the values of their care voters or manifesto. For example, large protests have taken place every year since the uk’s decision to leave the EU, and as a result the wishes of these protests have been ignored by the government.
Wealth Inequalities: Capitalism as a Cause
eg: around two-thirds of working age people in poverty live in a household where at least one adult is in work.
making clear the idea that capitalist wages on working people are clearly not enough as workers still live in poverty, proving that they don’t make a living wage.
Another reason of wealth inequality
- Another cause of wealth inequality is educational attainment. People with lower levels of education often have access to a narrower range of job opportunities. A lack of educational attainment therefore creates wealth inequality because without these qualifications, individuals may be limited to low skill, low wage jobs, which can make it difficult to escape poverty. For example, the Jrf found the poverty rate was lowest for those qualified to a degree level (around 10%) compared to those with no qualification who had a poverty rate of around 40%. In addition, the area of the uk you live in can reduce the likelihood of being able to afford to go to university and increase your risk of poverty. This is because English students can pay over £9,000 a year to go to university. This creates wealth inequality because many students who attend university rely on students’ loans to cover their tuition, fees and living expenses. The burden of repaying these loans can be financially challenging, making it difficult for graduates to meet other financial obligations and forcing Individuals in to poverty. For example, considering the poverty rate in Scotland is 3% lower compared to England, the greater barriers to education may explain some of England’s higher poverty rate.
Wealth Inequalities: Educational Attainment as a cause
eg: University costs in England are around £9,000 per year, making it impossible for those in poverty to complete a university degree. Whereas Scottish universities are generally free, increasing the likelihood of those in poverty to go to university as there is an even playing field between the richest and poorest
