Voting behaviour and media

• Class dealignment


  since the 1970s class has become less integral to who you vote for, e.g. Thatcher and Blair were able to win 3 consecutive elections by attracting classes they wouldn't normally this was influenced by society and economy changing with increasing affluence and less difference between the classes and parties changing their policies to try and appeal to all classes. For some voters however, this doesn't impact their decision.
• social factor: age

  • YouGov said it was the 'new dividing line in British politics' - partly linked to home ownership
  • in 2019, 22% of 18-29 year olds voted conservative whilst over 60% of over 60's did, more effective because turnout is higher (25% higher in 2019)
  • older voters have always been more conservative but evidence has shown that millennials aren't following suit
• social factor: region

  • traditionally, the labour heartlands were in the North while the tory heartlands were in the South East and East Midlands
  • however this isn't the case necessarily anymore e.g. in 2019 the tories broke down the red wall, majorities of nearly 20,000 were flipped
• social factor: class

  • of limited importants
  • in 2019 42% of AB (managerial) voted conservative voted tory while in 1964, 78% did
  • labour also faced accusations that they no longer represented working class interests
• social factor: education

  • education has shown to be more important recently with poeple with fewer qualifications more likely to vote conservative
  • in the EU referendum 75% of people without a degree or higher voted for Brexit and the same for the opposite
  • in 2019 just 29% of people with a degree or higher voted for conservatives
• social factor: ethnicity

  • BAME are more likely to vote labour and lib dems
  • 20% voted for labour in 2019
  • turnout is also lower amongst BAME
• rational choice and issue voting


  rational: people will vote for the party that benefits them the most

  issue: people will vote on policy that is most important to them even if they don't agree with the rest of party ideology e.g. Red wall falling to Conservatives in 2019 over Brexit
• valence factors

  When people vote based on who they think will be most competent in government either because they don't care about either policies or the 2 parties are very similar
• 1979 election case study

  social and economic: Winter of discontent, strikes, 'labour isn't working'

  social factors: while conservatives made headway with conservatives, they also received working class support because labour looked weak ad they appealed to the working class through right to buy and focus on small businesses

  issue voting: manifesto of focus on business and tax cuts, a radical change