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Politics > Voting Behaviour And The Media > Flashcards

Voting Behaviour And The Media Flashcards

1
Q

How was social class and status a key factor in general elections results?

A
  • up until the early 1970s it was a strong influence
  • class voting was influenced by self interest
  • each party was refined by protecting and representing different classes
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2
Q

When did class dealignment start and what was it’s impact?

A
  • since 1970s
  • Thatcher was able to win 3 consecutive elections by winning support of working class
  • Blair won 3 consecutive elections for Labour by winning support of middleclass
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3
Q

Why did class dealignment come about?

A

1) society and economy changing
- declining importance of traditional blue collar jobs
- less pronounced differences between classes
2) parties changing their policies and try to appeal to all classes to win elections

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4
Q

How is age a determinant of voting choice in the UK

A
  • very strong factor
  • older voters more likely to vote Con (2019, 22% 18-29= Con, over 60% over-60s= Con)
  • turnout higher in older voters (2017, turnout in 65+ was around 25 percentage points higher than in 18-24)
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5
Q

What is region’s effect on voting behaviour?

A
  • used to be labour in north and Con in south
  • now large city = Labour, rural area= Con
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6
Q

What is class and social status effect on voting behaviour?

A
  • limited importance
  • 2019 - 42% of those in AB category (managerial) voted Con compared to 48% from working class
  • 2017 - 59% of those in DE category voted Labour
  • 2917 72/100 labour constituencies were working class
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7
Q

What is education level effect on voting behaviour?

A
  • shown itself to be a key dividing line
  • less qualified tend to support Con and more qualified with Labour and lib dem’s
  • EU referendum: without qualifications voted 75% for Leave and with uni degrees went 75% Remain
  • 2019 election: Con party won 58% of vote from people whose highest level of education was GCSE or lower (YouGov stats)
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8
Q

What is the effect of ethnicity on voting behaviour?

A
  • 2019- 1 in 5 labour ethnic minority, 1 in 20 con
  • Turnout is also generally lower among BAME voters
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9
Q

What is the effect of gender on voter behaviour?

A
  • Women used to be more likely to vote Con, but now effect of gender is marginal
  • Bigger difference among youth though
  • 2019: (18-24 age group) Con won 15% of women’s vote, but 28% of mens
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10
Q

What is rational choice theory?

A
  • Voters behave like consumers by looking at the available choices and evaluating which is best for them
  • Linked to growth of more educated electorate, especially with internet
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11
Q

What is issue based voting?

A
  • similar to rational choice but suggests voters vote based on the policy they deem the most important even if they are not aligned with the partys other policies
  • 2019: 74% of Leave voters voted for Con
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12
Q

What is a valence issue?

A
  • When there isn’t significant disagreement between parties so voters just choose based on which one will be most effective in government
  • Important in 2010 and 2015 elections when there were fewer policy differences between the parties
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13
Q

VALENCE ISSUES: How important is Leadership?

A
  • public image of party leaders has become more important
  • ‘Presidentialisation’ for British politics since 1979 election like in the US due to media focus
  • Leaders are seen as important in winning over swing voters and unifying the party
  • HOWEVER, influence of leaders can be overstated. things like locals MPs, and social factors can be more important
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14
Q

VALENCE ISSUES: How important is competence?

A
  • the performance of the current government is and important factor in voting
  • 1997: Con thrown out after dropping behind in the polls after Black Wednesday in 1992 (wrecked their reputation of being economically competent)
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15
Q

What is a campaign?

A
  • the 6 weeks before an election
  • parties publish manifestos and try win over voters through things like the media, ads, TV debates
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16
Q

How important are campaigns to voters?

A
  • many voters only pay attention to politics during this time period, so can be highly important, especially if key events happen
  • however, importance may be overstated as many voters will have already made up their minds (and dont base their choices on short term events
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17
Q

How newspapers can have an effect during elections?

A
  • Con launched their manifesto in Telegraph newspaper 2019
  • Night before 2017 election, Daily Mail published front page attacking Labour Party and urging ppl no to vote for them
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18
Q

How does the media in general have a big impact on elections?

A
  • parties try to control their media appearance
  • 2019: Johnson refused to be interviewed by Andrew Neil, fearing impact a mishap could have on the campaign
  • TV debates and interviews are key moments
  • Key moments can go viral on social media
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19
Q

Arguments saying the media has little impact on elections?

A
  • some voters have strong allegiances to parties and are unlikely to be swayed by media
  • most individuals consume media they already agree with, so may be argued to not have much of an impact
  • other issues like valence and social uses can be seen as more important
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20
Q

1979 GENERAL ELECTION: General overview of result and impact?

A
  • began 18 years of conservative rule (Thatcher until 1990 then Major until 1997)
  • end to post-war consensus
  • After Callaghans minority Labour gov lost a vote of no confidence in the HoC
  • 76% turnout
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21
Q

1979 GENERAL ELECTION: Economic, and political context?

A
  • ‘Winter of Discontent’: series of strikes after gov tried to impose 5% limit on pay increases
  • Con used slogan ‘Labour isn’t working;
  • Labour looked weak, especially after result of Scottish and Welsh referendums that went against them
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22
Q

1979 GENERAL ELECTION: Social factors?

A
  • Thatcher tried to appeal to working class in her ‘Essex Man’ strategy, policies like Right To Buy council houses and support of small businesses
  • Was successful, as Con gained support from working class as well (winning 11% of C2 and 9% DE)
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23
Q

1979 GENERAL ELECTION: How effective were the campaigns?

A
  • Con - ‘Labour isn’t working’ was very effective
  • Thatcher used photo opportunities, such as a picture of her holding a newborn calf
  • Campaign in general had little impact on result as con was so far ahead
24
Q

1997 GENERAL ELECTION: Overview of result and impact

A
  • Removed con from office for first time in 18 years
  • Started 13 years of Labour (Blair until 2007, then Brown)
  • turnout of 71%, Labour won 43% of vote
  • Con 31% (worst result since 1832)
  • Lib Dem 17%
25
Q

1997 GENERAL ELECTION: Declining importance of class?

A
  • Labour managed to win over middle class votes (including in Con heartland of South East) while maintaining support of working class
  • Able to do this as shifted party policy significantly to centre
26
Q

1997 GENERAL ELECTION: Effect of rational choice?

A
  • Blair drove forward policy of modernisation and abandoned old fashioned part policies like nationalisation, tax increases and strengthening of Trade Union powers
  • tougher on crime (rising issue since early 1990s)
  • Constitutional reform policies shared common ground with Lib Dems to vote tactically for Labour in marginal seats
27
Q

1997 GENERAL ELECTION: Effect of leadership?

A
  • Blair was very popular across country
  • Contrasted with Major, who was seen as weak and boring (also cash for questions scandal)
28
Q

1997 GENERAL ELECTION: Effect of perceived competence?

A
  • “Black Wednesday” was well remembered by voters
  • From then on, Labour were consistently ahead in polls and so had an easier time presenting themselves as an economically competent party
29
Q

1997 GENERAL ELECTION: Effect of the media?

A
  • Labour won the endorsement of as lot of the press, including the Sun and the Times
  • message was that new Labour was a moderate part with the interests of ‘middle England’ at heart
  • ‘The Sun Backs Blair’
30
Q

1997 GENERAL ELECTION: Effect of social factors?

A
  • Labour gained among most groups of the population
  • Gained among all classes, especially middle class
  • Gained among white and BAME voters
31
Q

2010 GENERAL ELECTION: Overview of results and impact?

A
  • Brown and Labour were removed from office, ending New Labour era
  • first postwar coalition
  • coalition survived full term, partly due to Fixed Term Parliament Act Lib Dem’s had insisted on
  • turnout of 65%
  • Con 36%
  • Labour 29%
  • Lib dem 23%
32
Q

2010 GENERAL ELECTION: Effect of the campaign and TV debates?

A
  • Brown met a voter that embarrassed him in Rochdale and he called her a “bigoted woman”, media loved him (but Labour was already behind in polls, and rochdale was labour)
  • TV debates featuring the 3 leaders used
  • Clegg got boosted in opinion polls
33
Q

2010 GENERAL ELECTION: Effect of valence and leadership?

A
  • Con focused attacks on Labour’s alleged mismanagement of the economy - opinion polls agreed (59%) that most of extra money spent by Labour had been wasted
  • when brown became PM he made it seem like he would call an election in Autumn to secure a personal mandate, but then he didn’t. He was ridiculed
  • cameron was a very popular candidate
34
Q

2010 GENERAL ELECTION: Effect of policy?

A
  • Little difference between the 3 main parties on the need to reduce budget deficit which increased after the 2008 financial crash
  • only real differences were in the timing and extent of the cuts
35
Q

2010 GENERAL ELECTION: Effect of wider political and economic context?

A
  • 2008 financial crash and then the recession dominated the election and was important in decreasing Labour’s popularity among the electorate
36
Q

How does the press play a role in politics?

A
  • Newspapers have no obligation to be neutral and have political biases
  • Most seem to be more conservative-leaning
37
Q

Arguments that the press is significant in politics?

A
  • Around 7 million people read newspapers daily in the UK, particularly older voters who are also more likely to vote
  • Con who have won the last 4 elections have done so with the aid of the majority of the press
  • online newspapers also read
38
Q

Arguments that the press is not significant in politics?

A
  • In 2022 Daily Mail had a circulation of 909 000 compared to 1.85M in 2012 and 2.4M in 1997
  • Most people read papers that broadly reflect their outlook, so papers usually just confirm their readers existing views
  • unlikely that press CHANGES peoples voting behaviour
39
Q

Examples that support the press having a big impact in politics?

A
  • The top 2 newspapers (Sun and Mail) backed Con in last 3 elections
  • 1992 - “Sun wot won it” claimed to have won the election after editorials that poked fun at Neil Kinnocks
  • 2019 - Tories partly launched their manifesto in Telegraph
40
Q

Examples that support press not having big impact on politics?

A
  • YouGov polling reported that 30% of Sun readers and 39% of FT readers voted Labour in 2017, despite them backing Con
  • run up to 2017 election, Corbyn had very bad press image (Daily Mail front page of ‘Corbin’) but still did much better than expected
41
Q

How do TV and radio play a role in politics?

A
  • for most channels like BBC, news coverage is supposed to be neutral and balanced
  • important for media coverage of elections
  • parties are allocated an agreed amount of airtime for their election broadcasts, based on their voting share in the last contest and the number of constituencies they’re contesting
42
Q

Arguments for TV and radio playing a significant role in politics?

A
  • it helps voters from an opinion about he leaders themselves
  • TV debates are important during election periods for shaping views
  • Between elections, it allows the politicians to be held to account through things like interviews
43
Q

Examples for TV and radio playing a significant role in politics?

A
  • a lot of the negative images around Corbyn focused on his ‘scruffy’ appearance rather than his policies
  • 2017 - Theresa May refused to tale part in a head on head TV debate with Corbyn and it made her look weak
  • Survey in the run up to 2015 election: 62% cited television as the strongest influence, vs 25% for papers
44
Q

Arguments that TV and radio are NOT significant?

A
  • like with the press, it often reinforces political views rather than changing them
  • TV and radio can be seen as less important to younger voters who are more likely to get information from social media or the internet
45
Q

Examples of TV and radio not being significant in politics?

A
  • In run up to 2010 election, Nick Clegg enjoyed a boost in polls following the first TV debate. but it was short lived and voters swung back to main 2 parties
  • 2019 TV debates didn’t result in polls changing much after, with neither leader coming massively out on top
46
Q

How do social media and the internet play a role in politics?

A
  • By 2015, social media became important, e.g Con spent £100,000 a month on Facebook advertising
  • Internet isn’t subject the same neutrality rules as TV and can be highly partisan
  • Online advertising on social media is a problem as it is difficult to track where money is being spent and whether it is within the legal limits. It is also easy for non-party supporters to spend a great deal without declaring
47
Q

Arguments that internet and social media are significant in politics?

A
  • central to how younger voters consume political information and shape their views
  • can lead to certain scandals going viral
  • targeted advertising on social media highly important to how parties try to reach voters
48
Q

Examples of how the internet and social media are important in politics?

A
  • 2015 Survery: indicated that 79% of 18-24 year olds relied almost totally on online sources to inform themselves
  • according to WhoTargetsMe, labour spent over £1.4M on Facebook advertising in the 2019 election
49
Q

Arguments that the internet and social media do NOT play a significant role in politics?

A
  • A lot of the political coverage on social media is dominated by traditional forms of media, with journalists using it to report news
  • These considerations also tend to not apply to the older generation who are more likely to vote and also get their news from press and TV
50
Q

How to opinion polls play a role in politics?

A
  • Polls run by firms such as Ipsos MORI and YouGov aim to see the popularity of parties by asking people how they will vote
  • Parties use opinion polls to gauge the popularity of different policies
  • Exit polls are often the first indication of the election result
51
Q

Examples of opinion polls and their accuracy?

A
  • 1992: failed to predict Major’s narrow victory, instead polls predicted hung parliament or narrow labour victory
  • 2015: predicted Labour being wiped out by SNP, and predicted Con and Labour would both have around 34% in England (was more 37% Con and 30% Labour). Poll surveyed too many politically engaged young people and not enough retired ones
  • 2017: few polls predicted that Labour would make significant gains and stop Tory majority
  • 2019 was quite accurate
52
Q

Arguments that opinion polls are significant in politics?

A
  • Turnout is more likely to be higher if polls indicate a close election (e.g 2015 and in Brexit, that had higher turnouts)
  • If an election seems decided, people may not bother or may use vote to protest (strong argument that this is why Corbyn gained support in 2017)
  • Allows voters to vote tactically as it gives an idea of who will win in their area
  • can be seen as important in shaping party policies
53
Q

Arguments that the media is important in holding the government to account between elections?

A
  • Media was crucial in exposing Partygate scandal, through receiving leaks
    -Ministers are questioned by journalists daily, where failings can be exposed. Especially true of Johnson’s government, where ministers were asked to defend the undefendable
54
Q

Arguments that the media is NOT important in holding the government to account between elections?

A
  • Parliament has more important role into that
  • Allgeations of bias against BBC from both sides of political spectrum (e.g with Laura Kuenssberg being accused of spreading fake news to benefit Conservative)
  • Parties will seek to control the news agenda (Blair recruiting a press secretary, Alastair Campbell, the political editor of the today newspaper at the time)
55
Q

Arguments that the media has a positive impact on democracy?

A
  • Free media is a vital feature of a healthy democracy, especially when parliamentary opposition is weak
  • Allows more people to have a voice and participate in politics
  • TV and radio coverage is less biased than other forms, due to the neutrality of channels like BBC
56
Q

Arguments that the media has a negative impact on democracy?

A
  • Often too much focus on leaders than policies, as they are driven by getting as many clicks as possible
  • Newspapers are notoriously partisan and will alter their allegiance in response to changing circumstances
  • Newspaper owners are primarily interested in boosting their circulation figures and can’t be held to account the way politicians can
  • Governments have been making important policy announcements in TV studios rather than in HoC, seen as detracting from the role of parliament which is elected to perform this role

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