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A Level Politics Edexcel > Voting behaviours > Flashcards

Voting behaviours Flashcards

1
Q

What are long term influences on voting

A

social class, gender, race, religion, age, education and long term political alignment

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2
Q

What are short term influences on voting behaviour

A

performance of party in gov, major issues, electoral campaign, party leaders images, mass media influence, major political events

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3
Q

When was the first mass male electorate developed

A

19th century

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4
Q

When was the addition of women being able to vote

A

20th century

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5
Q

What year was the secret ballot introduced

A

1872

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6
Q

When did 18 year olds get the vote

A

1969

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7
Q

When did 16 year olds vote for the first time in the UK

A

2014

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8
Q

What are the three main competing models

A

Party identification, sociological and individual voting

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9
Q

Describe party identification and what it is linked to

A

Voting behaviour is the result of political socialisation, which leads to political loyalty to a party.

Linked to partisan alignment- although partisan dealignment is steadily rising

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10
Q

Describe sociological factors and what they are linked to

A

Voting behaviour is associated with sociological factors traditionally class but gender, age, ethnicity, education and religion have all been prominent in the last elections.

Linked to class alignment although in recent decades there has been a decline in this leading to class dealignment

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11
Q

Describe individual voting

A

the result of individuals making decisions based on available choices.
May vote rationally
Party managers understand the importance of campaigning

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12
Q

Describe individual voting

A

the result of individuals making decisions based on available choices.
May vote rationally
Party managers understand the importance of campaigning

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13
Q

List some factors voting may be based on (5)

A 
Issues
economic competence
governing competence
party leaders
party campaign
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14
Q

Define partisan alignment

A

Voters that have a long term stable attachment to one of the main parties developed through socialisation

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15
Q

Evidence for partisan alignment

A

1964
90% of voters identified with a party
44% had a strong identification

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16
Q

Define partisan dealignment

A

Decline in the number of voters that identify with a party- no longer feel a sense of loyalty

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17
Q

Evidence for partisan dealignment

A

2005- 13% had a strong identification

2010- 65.1% voted for the two main parties

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18
Q

Name 3 reasons for partisan dealignment

A

Disillusionment with the main parties
More voter choice– more choices
Less difference between the main two parties

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19
Q

What happened in the 2019 election (PD)

A

Partisan dealignment Lab voters –> Con
Lab ‘red wall’ fell
Blythe valley hadn’t voted con since 1950s
Bassetlaw hadn’t voted con since 1924

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20
Q

What is social class

A

The way in which people are classified on the basis of their occupations and to some extent their income and class can be used to explain various forms of behaviour

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21
Q

What is AB, and what % of the populations is AB

A

Higher managerial and professionals

- 22.17%

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22
Q

C1

How much of the population are C1

A

Managerial, administrative or professionals

30.84%

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23
Q

C2

How much of the population is C2

A

Skilled manual occupations

20.94%

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24
Q

D E

what percentage of the population is D E

A

semi and unskilled manual occupations

26.05%

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25
Q

In the 1964 election what % of voters did Harold Wilson and Alec Douglas- Hume have

A

HW- 64% D E

ADH- 78% AB

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26
Q

Define class alignment

A 
Commitment of a particular social class to a political party.
Strongly linked with party loyalty
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27
Q

What did Pultzer suggest about class

A

‘Class is the basis of British party politics; all else is embellishment and detail’

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28
Q

In 1964 there was the highest evidence for what?

A

Class and voting correlation
DE- 64% Lab
AB- 78% Con

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29
Q

In the 2010 election there was evidence for what

A

a decline in class and voting correlation
DE- 40% Lab
AB- 40%Con

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30
Q

In 2017 there was an increase in

A

DE voting Lab (59%)

Slight decrease in AB voting

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31
Q

2019 there was a weak correlation of

A 
class and voting correlation 
Lab DE-39% and AB-45% con
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32
Q

Define class dealignment

A

suggests that voters are less likely to voter according to their membership of a particular class,
Linked to partisan dealignment

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33
Q

In 1979 what did Thatcher do to try and make the Conservatives seem less middle class

A

Launched campaign in Cardiff
11% C2 swing
9% DE swing

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34
Q

What did Blair do in 1997 do to get Lab voters make Lab appeal beyond the core voter

A

Working class saw Lab as progressive party

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35
Q

What happened in 2017 that show evidence of CD

A

TM- gained DE brexit supporters

Corbyn gets AB pro euro voters

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36
Q

What was significant about the 2019 class votes

A 
Absence of class distinctions 
Low C2 DE turnout 
Lib Dem- AB C1
Brexit/Ukip- DE
Alienation of traditional Lab voters
Green was consistent
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37
Q

What policies have encouraged people to see themselves as middle class

A

1979- right to buy council house
Buying shares via the privatisation of companies
Foreign holidays
Private services

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38
Q

What are the work place divisions

A

Public sector- Lab

Private- Con

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39
Q

What has changed in political parties

A

Range of parties when focusing on important issues
1997-2010- New Lab- catch all party- gains across all social groups
2019- Campaigning in Lab heartlands

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40
Q

What is the influence of other factors

A

Valence issues

Voting for other parties

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41
Q

Describe the class viewpoints on Brexit

A

AB- strong remain
C1- remain
C2- strong leave
DE-leave

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42
Q

What is the decline in traditional working class

A

De industrialisation
Fallen manual labour
New working class- women and part timer workers
50% of workers are in service industry

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43
Q

What is the north south divide

A

The division between the north and south of England socially, economically and politically

Southern bias

North- higher unemployment, poverty and ill health

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44
Q

Conservatives- region

A

SE support

Ethically rural places- white voters

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45
Q

Labour region

A 
Ethnically diverse cities support
working class
industry 
London
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46
Q

Lib Dems regions

A

N Scotland, rural wales, SW

Small and spread out voters

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47
Q

2017 election- parties and regions

A

Lab- London, North, Wales
Con- South, Midlands
Lib Dem- South and London
SNP- scotland

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48
Q

What is the patterns in cities, small towns and rural areas and the way that they vote

A

Lab- cities
Con- rural
Small towns- Con

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49
Q

Young voters

A

Low turnout

Labour

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50
Q

Evidence for Young people leaning towards voting Lab

A 
Con: Lab votes (%)
1979- 42:41
1997- 27:49
2017- 18:67
2019- 21:56
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51
Q

Why are young people more inclined to vote Lab

A 
Social media campaigns
Progressive 
Remain 
Policies favour students
Nationalisation 
Peer pressure
Social justice
Environment
Idealistic
52
Q

Older voters

A

Con

Higher turnout

53
Q

Evidence for older votes favouring Con

A 
Lab: Con (%)
1997- 41:36
2015- 23:47
2017- 23:59
2019- 22:57
54
Q

Why do older voters vote Con

A 
Low taxation 
Strong defence
Strong law and order
Con- Euro sceptic 
Own their own property
Stabilty> change that Lab offers
55
Q

What Lab policies appealed to young voters in 2017 and 2019

A

Environmental policies
Free tuition fees
EMA reinstated
Free broadband

56
Q

What policies did May include in her manifesto that angered elderly voters

A

Remove triple lock

Dementia tax

57
Q

What is the pattern between education and voting

A

2017- Con increased their support among those with fewest educational qualifications
Lab- highest amount of support amongst those in HE
Con- appeal to white working class
Lab- Liberal approach to immigration
Con-nationalism
Con- globalisation

58
Q

Ethnicity in voting

A

more likely to vote Labour

59
Q

Why do ethnic minorities vote Lab

A 
High wealth fare spending 
Trade union association 
Multiculturalism commitment 
Lab- 1976 Race relations act 
Con- hostile to immigrant communities
60
Q

2005- evidence of issue voting

A

Iraq War

Lab lost ground with the Muslim population

61
Q

2010- evidence of Lab regaining the ethnic minority support

A

68% voted Lab

62
Q

2015 election BAME MPs

A

Con- BAME MPs in safe seat constituencies

Lab- elected in high BAME voter constituencies

63
Q

Why did women used to be more likely to vote Con

A

Worked in low paid office jobs/ didn’t work

Were not unionised

64
Q

2017 election- gender

A

CON- 18% women vs 36% men

LAB- 73% women vs 52% men

65
Q

2019 election- gender

A

2019- women > men for lab (all ages)

18-24 year olds 65:46 % (W:M)

66
Q

How have the parties appealed to women

A

1997- Blair- all women shortlists
2010- Cameron- encouraged an increase in female Con candidates
2015- Lab women to women buses targeted women that hadn’t voted
2000- free nursery

67
Q

How have the changes to a women’s societal roles impacted their voting

A

1970/80- Housewives- Thatcher emphasised her housewife skills
1980- more women entered the workplace and took jobs in Lab areas

68
Q

Difference in valent issues for men and women

A

Women- education and healthcare

Men- defence and security

69
Q

Turnout and age

A

The older you are the more likely you are to vote

70
Q

Why is turnout low among young voters

A

Disillusion with conventional politics
Alternative political participation
Single issues> ideologies
Abstention

71
Q

In between the years 1992-2015 how much did turnout in young people fall by

A

19%

72
Q

what was turnout like in 2005 (Iraq war)

A

37%

73
Q

What was the ‘youthquake’ in 2017

A

there was a surge in youth votes by 11% due to anger caused by Brexit

74
Q

What was the impact of young voters in 2017

A

Increase of youth vote
Labour’s share of the national vote increased by 10%
This prevented a majority in parliament

75
Q

Briefly describe tactical voting

A

Due to wasted votes
People abandon their party which they believe wont win
Vote for a main party that has a chance of winning

76
Q

Define valence

A

When voters make their decision based on the party/ candidate they think is most likely to run the country effectively (governing competence) and the economy (economic competence)

77
Q

What are the four factors valence voters may look at when choosing who to vote for?

A

Party reputation
Perception of governing competence
Perception of economic competence
Potential of the party leaders to become PM

78
Q

How do the main parties encourage valence voting

A

Differences between the policy positions of the parties has narrowed down and without a clear choice voters might instead rely on other factors

79
Q

How did labour encourage valence voting in 2017

A

lack of clarity on Brexit

80
Q

Define governing competence

A

The perceived ability of the governing party in office to manage the affairs of the state well and effectively. If the view is that they’ve failed encourages public to vote for change

81
Q

James Callaghan losing his reputation of governing competence (1979)

A

Inability to tackle the power of the trade unions led to strikes which led to the ‘winter of discontent’

82
Q

Neil Kinnock losing his governing competence (1992)

A

Bad reputation as the leader of Labour party

83
Q

John Major losing his governing competence (1997)

A

Conservative party damaged by the economic recession, a range of scandals and internal divisions over the EU

84
Q

Gordon Brown losing his governing competence (2010)

A

Labour’s reputation of economic competence was suffered due to the economic crash was led by the unpopular Gordon Brown

85
Q

What is economic voting

A

Where voters see the economy as the most important issue and make their decision based on the party they believe is most economically competent at leading government

86
Q

What does salient mean

A

Important

In politics something is salient if its important to a group of voters and influences the way that they vote

87
Q

2010 banking crisis

A

negative impact on Lab
Austerity scares many voters
No party convinced voters of their economic competence

88
Q

2019 economy

A

Brexit meant uncertain economy
Lab had a radical manifesto
Shift in economic policies

89
Q

Rational voting choice

A

Non committed voters make a rational choice.

Voters treat politicians the same way as consumers goods

90
Q

What is expressive voting

A

Voter gets the satisfaction if they voter for a party that will benefit society as a whole

91
Q

What is instrumental voting

A

voters vote to benefit themselves

92
Q

Salient issues in elections (1997- 2019)

A 
1997- public services
2005- Iraq war
2010- financial crisis
2015- Nhs and immigration 
2017- NHS
2019- Brexit
93
Q

Factors affecting voting choice

A 
Leaders competence to be PM
How parties preform in office
Reputation
Tactical voting 
Policies in manifesto 
Valent/ salient issues
94
Q

Party leaders

A

Image of party leaders
More presidential system
Voters use party leaders as a short cut for choosing their party
Past- ‘Vote conservative’ Present- ‘I voted Boris Johnson’

95
Q

Important leadership qualities

A 
Honesty 
Decisiveness 
Communication skills
Vision
Strong leadership
Record in office
Sincerity and compassionate
96
Q

Factors that linked to Margret Thatcher being known as a successful party leader

A 
Radical solutions 
Focused on Lab failures
Presented herself as a house wife
Strong and focused leadership 
High unemployment levels
97
Q

Factors that linked to Tony Blair being known as a successful party leader

A

Self confidence
Charismatic
Won over the murdoch press
Modern

98
Q

Factors that linked to David Cameron being known as a successful party leader

A

Media savvy
Focused on Labour’s economic failure
No parliamentary majority
Heir to Blair

99
Q

Factors that linked to Michael Foot being known as an unsuccessful party leader

A

Left wing intellectual
No appeal beyond Lab core vote
Brilliant speaker
Looked to old

100
Q

Factors that linked to Gordon Brown being known as an unsuccessful party leader

A

Ex chancellor
Grumpy
Bully

101
Q

Define mandate

A

Winning party can claim the authority to implement its manifesto promises and the ability to act if new issues arise

102
Q

The doctrine of the mandate depends on

A

electors being confident that they understand the policies they are giving their consent to when they vote

mandate allows parliament to hold the gov to account based on their manifesto

electors can judge the performance of the gov and their mp against their mandate at the next election

103
Q

Sometimes the mandate can have problems because…

A

coalition and minority gov can make the mandate less clear

voters may not like all the policies in a manifesto

circumstances may change after the party takes power and they may abandon their manifesto commitments

some manifesto commitments are vague and open to commitment

104
Q

Do campaigns influence the results of elections?

YES

A

Some campaigns may reinforce existing attitudes but other campaigns may challenge them

E.g. with the growth of partisan dealignment campaigns do matter

105
Q

Do campaigns influence the results of elections?
YES
2010 election

A

Strong lib dem campaign
Clegg had an impressive performance
Increased Lib dem support at the expense of conservatives which led to a coalition government

106
Q

Do campaigns influence the results of elections?
YES
2017 election

A

Corbyn- optimistic campaign and manifesto
May- uninspiring and unpopular manifesto
Lab support went from 30% to 40%

107
Q

Do campaigns influence the results of elections?

NO

A

Some political commentators say the influence of the campaign can be exaggerated and that voters have already made up their mind

108
Q

Do campaigns influence the results of elections?
NO
1950/60s

A

class allegiance meant campaigns made little difference in swaying the voters

109
Q

Do campaigns influence the results of elections?
NO
1987

A

lab- ran a dynamic, praised campaign showing leadership competence
con- won with 102 seat majority

110
Q

Do campaigns influence the results of elections?
NO
1997

A

John Major decided on a long campaign in the hope that he could reduce Blair’s huge lead
Blair was far ahead

111
Q

Do campaigns influence the results of elections?
NO
2017

A

Con- poor campaign yet increased vote share from 36.9% to 42.4%

112
Q

What are the 4 main types of media

A

TV
Newspapers
Print
Online media

113
Q

Traditionally the role of the media was to…

A 
Report political events accurately 
Educate the public 
Provide commentary on political events 
Scrutinise the gov
Provide a forum for debate
Act as a bridge between the elected and the electoral
114
Q

How has the media changed

A 
24 hour news
sensationalised events
focus on personality 
created a national mood of cynicism 
online media
115
Q

Tv debates (2010-2019

A

2010- first ever- Clegg had equal coverage- Lib dem benefited
2015- 7 party leader debate- no clear winner
2017- May decides against debate- allowed other parties to attack her
2019- Johnson v Corbyn

116
Q

Thatcher and the media

A 
Understood media power
Softened her voice 
Bolder outfits
Sympathetic programmes 
Memorable sound bites
117
Q

Blair and the media

A

Favourable news stories
calm and reassuring
statement like

118
Q

Johnson and the media

A

tries to be relatable/comedic
effective phrases
struggles when challenged

119
Q

media and the 1992 election

A

attacked neil kinnock to undermine his credibility to be PM

120
Q

media and the 1997 election

A

Blair had connection with Murdoch

121
Q

Does the press impact voters?

YES

A

Correlation between readers and the paper they read
Sun always back the winning parties
Growth in online readership

122
Q

Does the press impact voters?

NO

A

Declining readership
Read what they already support
Reading doesn’t equal their own political views

123
Q

What are opinion polls

A

A view taken at a point in time to predict what the actual vote will be in the election

124
Q

Do voting polls influence voting?

Yes

A

Bandwagon effect- support the winner
Influences campaigning methods
Helps swing voters to decide what to do

125
Q

Do voting polls affect voting?

NO

A

Most people have made up their mind by the time they’re aware of the polls
Inaccurate
Overestimate Lab underestimate Con

A Level Politics Edexcel (2 decks)

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