Voting behaviour and the media Flashcards
what were the policies for the 2019 GE for conservatives that contributed to the results?
POLICIES:
- the cons focused on their pledge to “get brexit done”
- in order to attract voters that support labour, they also promised to increase the spending on the NHS, police and infrastructure
what were the policies for the 2019 GE for labour that contributed to the results?
POLICIES:
- labour planned increase for day to day spending over the next five years would amount to £83 billion, compared to £3 billion for the cons
what were the policies for the 2019 GE for LibDems?
POLICIES:
- they had a clear cut offer to cancel brexit
- cancelling brexit would make a remain bonus of £50 billion which could be spent on public services
- they also had plans for specifically targeted tax rises
what were the campaigns and party leaders that contributed to the 2019 GE results for cons?
- all candidates were required to pledge loyalty to the PM’s brexit plan
- towards the end of the campaign, Johnson mishandled an encounter with a journalist who tried to make him look at photos of a four year old sleeping on the floor
what were the campaigns and party leaders that contributed to the 2019 GE results for labour?
- labour contrasted cons as they had a lack of clarity on the brexit issue
- corbyn eventually declared that he would remain neutral in a second referendum
- in the final stages of the campaign, labour switched its focus to leaving the EU; supporting seats in the north but wasnt successful- the labour leader was regarded as a negative factor for his party as he had alleged links to terrorist groups
- ## corbyn’s failure to deal with antisemitism on the labour left was a continuos source of embarrassment for the party
demographic factors that led to the 2019 GE results?
- age was the most important determinant of voting
- 56% of those in the 18-24 bracket would vote for labour compared to 14% of those aged 70 and over
- the declining importance of class was evident in the 2019 GE where labour scored 33% in both middle class and working class occupations
- brexit was an importance issue in the 2019 GE; the cons were supported by 74% of leave voters but only 19% of remain voters
how did the policies contribute to the 1997 GE result for conservatives?
- economic policy played an important role but people didnt give the cons credit for this
- the image of Tory incompetence was confirmed by a series of financial and sexual scandals
- the impression of weak leadership was fatal for the cons
how did the campaign and leaders contribute to the 1997 GE result for labour?
- blair was a dominant figure in the labour party leading up to the 1997 general election
- the party even appeared to change its name to new labour
what were the policies for the 1997 GE for labour?
- tony blair was convinced that one of the key reasons for labour losing the election was due to the allegation that they would increase the basic rate of tax
- this led to them pledging to not raise a higher rate of income tax and to keep the conservative’s spending plans
how did media and opinion polls contribute to the 1997 GE turnout?
- another significant factor in the 1997 Ge was the use of spin doctors; new labour tried to manipulate the press to put across the message of the day
what are demographic factors that led to the 1997 GE turnout?
- class (blair realised the working class were decreasing, so wanted to appeal more to the middle class, so adopted the “third way”)
- age (the young were attracted to vote for labour as it represented a break from traditional out of date politics)
how did the party leader in the 1979 GE affect the result for cons?
- margaret thatcher learnt party technique of how leaders were supposed to present themselves
- she campaigned to marginal seats, especially in seats with high unemployment
how did the party leader in the 1979 GE affect the result for labour?
- callaghan lead britain into increased prosperity and prestige
how did the media in the 1979 GE affect the result for labour?
- the sun reported “ crisis, what crisis?”, following on from callaghan’s interview about trade union strikes; making him seem out of touch with what was happening
how did wider context in the 1979 GE affect the result for labour?
- the economy was in poor state, concerning inflation and labour was associated with high inflation
how did demographic factors affect the 1979 results?
- turnout (was not a significant factor but many working class voters didn’t show up)
- class (there was an apparent class dealignment with less people referring to themselves as working class and identifying themselves more with the middle class)
