The 1997 GE Flashcards
What was the conservative maj following 1992
23
When was the last time the conservatives had had a worse electoral defeat than 1997
1906
In which GE did Labour record their largest electoral victory
1997
Seats won
Labour - 418
Conservative - 165
Lib Dem - 46
Other - 30
Seat change since 1992
Labour - +145
Conservative - -165
Lib Dem - +30
Others - +6
% of votes won
Labour - 43
Conservatives - 31
Lib Dem - 17
Others - 9
% vote swing since 1992
Labour - +9
Conservative - -11
Lib Dem - -1
Others - +3
What did Blair and the New Labour leadership realise about the working class vote
They recognised that the trad working class, Labour’s core vote, was diminishing in size and the party could no longer rely on it to get them into power; it simply did not have enough votes
How did the Blair and the New Labour leadership respond to this pressure to shift away from the working class vote
Decided to woo the middle classes, part of the conservative core vote, by adopting centrist third way policies. This was achieved to great effect. The young were also persuaded to vote Labour as it represented a break from traditional, out of date politics
How was valence and the economy a factor in swinging votes towards Labour
The image of the conservative party was tired after having been in power for 18 years and also disunited over the issue of Europe. The conservative had presided over a deep recession in the 1990s, so competence was an issue. In contrast, Labour had no economic recor to defend and appeared to be a younger, fresher party, united around a defineable set of third way policies. The main problem for the conservatives was that the electorate could remember the aforementioned recession and blamed them for it, there was a general sense that the conservatives had mismanaged the economy
How were party leaders a factor
Huge contrast. Major seemed grey and weak, whereas Blair was young and attractive with a clear vision and in command of his party. Lib Dem leader Paddy Ashdown also had a positive reputation and this was reflected by a good election for his party
Importance of participation
First signs of a long term decline in turnout. 71% figure seems healthy by modern standards but was much lower than typical historical levels. There does not seem to have been any impact on the result, but it was a watershed moment in political participation
Describe the main political issues
Two main issues were the NHS and the state of education. Both services had been in decline. Labour promised to make huge investments to raise standards. Brown promised to be a responsible chancellor, an important message considering the Labour reputation as the party of tax and spend. Labour was fortunate enough to preside over a period of economic growth when it came into office, meaning it could pay for the improvements to public services that it had promised
Between 1992-4 the conservatives had been hopelessly divided over the Maastricht Treaty, which transferred large amounts of power to the EU. The hangover from this and the culture of sleaze still loomed ocer rhe party in 1997
How was the campaign duration different
It lasted 6 weeks, far longer than the 31 day average going back to 1959
Why did Major call a longer campaign than usual
He hoped it would expose Labour divisions and put pressure on Blair
How were both campaigns similar
Both campaigns focused on the leaders, touring marginal seats and using campaign buses and planes
What did Labour’s campaign focus on
Strict and well organised campaign run from the Milibank Media Centre. The use of media soundbites like ‘education, education, education’ helped galvanise the public
What did the conservative campaign focus on
They focused on fears of Labour restoring TU power and Blair being untrustworthy. They were forced to spend much of their time dealing with issues of sleaze and financial corruption, distracting from its wider campaign
What was the key difference in focus between the conservative and labour campaigns
The conservatives launched a negative, anti labour campaign, whereas labour launched a positive, pro-Blair campaign
Evaluate the impact that the campaigns had
They did little to change the results but they did see a big step towards the disciplined, media focused electioneering based on US politics
What policies did the conservatives focus on
They tried to focus on economic recovery, but the issue of Europe divided the party and dominated, especially due to the prominence of the Referendum Party
What policies did Labour focus on
Focus on five specific pledges
1) Cut class sizes in schools
2) Introduce fast track punishments for young offenders
3) Cut NHS waiting lists
4) Get 250,000 unemployed under 25s back into work
5) Cut VAT on heating and not raise income tax
All these policies were designed to promote the New Labour Third Way
Significance of opinion polls
Having been spectacularly wrong in 1992, opinion polls made a more concerted effort to survery a wider cross section of society. They were much more accurate in 1997, but the legacy of distrust from 1992 meant that New Labour did not believe them and kept campaigning as if it might lose. There is also a case for suggesting that by presenting New Labour as the clear favourite to win a large maj , turnout may have been suppressed slightly
Describe regional voting in this election
Labour made gains across all regions, bucking the trend towards a conservative south and a labour north. The conservatives were wiped out in Scotland and Wales and reduced to only 11 MPs in London, becoming a party of the English suburbs and shires
Describe class voting
Labour gained across all groups, most notably with C1 (+19%) and C2 (+15%) but the conservative still won the AB vote and the C1 vote was tied
Describe gender voting
Labour closed the gender gap with men and women equally likely to vote Labour
Describe age voting
Conservatives remained dominant with the over 65s, but Labour won decisively among all other age groups
Describe ethnicity voting
Labour beat the conservative among white voters, with 43% of the vote, and BAME voters, with 70% of the vote. The conservatives only got 32% of the white vote and 18% of the BAME vote
