voting behaviour Flashcards
class voting behaviour 2024
LABOUR - 36% ABC1, 33% C2DE
42% people with degrees voted Labour
CONSERVATIVE - 25% ABC1
lowest education levels voted Conservative 31%
working class likely to vote Labour as it has w/c roots. higher classes likely to vote Conservative due to their policies such as low tax.
class voting trends
- Class identity - voting lab shows class solidarity, voting con is status
- Party roots in community - wealthy areas in London vote Con
- Selfish reasons - Con interest m/c, Lab interest w/c
gender voting behaviour 2024
46% of Labour MPs are women
only 24% of Conservative MPs are women
women may prioritize issues such as healthcare which may result in them voting Labour/Lib Dem.
men may be more likely to prioritize issues such as the economy and immigration, meaning they align more with Conservative/Reform.
age voting behaviour 2024
highest proportion of votes for Labour came from 30-39 age bracket - 46%
highest proportion of votes for Conservative came from 70+ age bracket - 46%
when a person is younger they may have student debt and be focused on issues such as housing and education causing them to vote for Labour.
When they are older they will have more money meaning that they lean more towards Conservative.
region voting behaviour
north/south divide - north vote Labour, south vote Conservative
HEYWOOD & MIDDLETON - turned Con in 2019 for the first time, it had previously been a Labour stronghold.
northern areas have historically voted Labour due to its focus on workers rights/welfare. Wealthier areas in the south favour Conservative due to low taxation.
ethnicity voting behaviour
many ethnic minorities vote Labour because of its stance on anti-discrimination and social equality (Race relations acts in 60s/70s)
Enoch Powell made Conservatives unpopular to ethnic minorities
media voting behaviour
influence of the press:
THE SUN
- has backed the winning party at every election since 1979
- “Sun backs Blair” - The Sun backs Blair in 1997
- “Sun wot won it” - relentless campaign against Neil Kinnock, which the Sun says changed peoples minds and caused the Conservatives to win a surprise victory in 1992
- Bacon sandwich incident with Ed Miliband 2015
tactical voting
- 1997 election, tactical voting cost the Conservatives around 46 seats, with Labour taking 35 and Lib Dems taking 11
- websites that encourage tactical voting
