You need to know the various influences upon voting behaviour, and their impact. They include;
- Parents
- Social class
- Occupation
- Ethnicity
- The area of the country a person lives in, etc.
LABOUR voters |
CONSERVATIVE voters |
More likely to be working-class, live in the north and in the inner-cities. There is also strong support for Labour in Scotland and Wales.
Ethnic minorities and the young are also more likely to vote Labour. |
More likely to be white, middle-class and living in either the suburbs or a rural area. The Conservatives do particularly well in the South of England, although in the 2005 General Election they gained more votes in the whole of England than the Labour party. |
Voter turnout has declined in recent years due to apathy – where voters are not motivated to vote for any political party. There are several causes of apathy you need to be aware of;
- Disillusionment with politicians – this is a particular problem amongst younger voters
- A widespread feeling that politicians do not listen to the people
- There is little ideological difference between the two main parties
- A feeling that one vote can make little difference. Since 1997 this has been a particular problem in safe Labour seats, where turnout has declined significantly
In recent years, political parties have tried to target their message to the 100,000 or so floating voters in marginal constituencies (seats in the House of Commons that can change from one party to another). This is because this small group of voters effectively decides the result of a General Election. The modern-style of campaigning, with its emphasis upon focus groups and sound-bites, has also contributed to apathy amongst the electorate (i.e. in the 2005 election, only 61% of the electorate bothered to vote).
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