Voting behaviour and the media: case studies random facts Flashcards
what does a parties manifesto outline?
the party’s programme of policies it aims to implement if elected.
reasons why in 1979 Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative party were elected
the weakness of the Labour government, which had lost a vote of no confidence in Parliament and had been regularly defeated in the House of Commons
Callaghan was also seen as unable to control trade union
The country was recovering from the “Winter of Discontent”, where there were mass strikes. (the conservatives put pressure on the labour government due to their handling of the economy)
in 1979 what did both Conservative and Labour Party manifestos promise?
lowered inflation
when was Tony Blairs New Labour elected and with how many seats?
1997
418 seats
how did the 1997 New Labour win?
Labour’s campaign involved targeting marginal seats, which are seats that have a small majority and only require a small swing of the vote for a new party to win it.
new labour policies
Moved away from traditional Labour policies like increasing taxes
Tough on law and order
Appealed to Lib Dem voters with constitutional reform
what was important of the 2010 general election?
Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition
In 2010, the Conservative Party were the largest party with 306 seats. But, they were short of a majority so formed a coalition with the Liberal Democrats.
what happened before the 2010 election, why was this important and who was in power during this time?
the 2008 financial crisis took place when Gordon Brown was prime minister which gave the Conservatives a means to attack his policies and time as leader.
Problems with James Callaghan’s Labour government
Trade unions were striking over attempts to limit pay increases
Callaghan was seen as unable to control unions
The government was seen to be unable to address the UK’s social breakdown
how large was labours majority in 1997?
179
what happened during the winter of discontent in 1979?
mass strikes
what did the mass strikes of the winter of discontent cause?
mass disruption, with teachers, gravediggers and many other public sector workers going on strike. The political atmosphere was chaotic, Labour looked like they were losing control of the country and some wondered if Britain had become ‘ungovernable’.
