4.1- general elections

 

impact of social class

yes

no

issues of taxation and welfare- tied to class- remain key issues

brexit/immigration etc. blur class lines

number of voters still identify with their class identity

size + importance of working classes has decreased

regional voting tends to reflect class-based issues like wealth/poverty

home ownership, education etc. mean class is more blurred now, class dealignment

social mobility and inequality remain concerns for many voters

modern parties must appeal across classes now

 

factors impacting voting:

  • class

    • 1964- 64% of class D and E voted Labour, figures fluctuate with aspiration voters or deference voters, but generally strong if lower- 39% in 2019

    • 1964-78% of A and B voted Tory, 45% in 2019


  • party alignment

    • partisan dealignment shifting expectations


  • gender

    • across all ages, women are left of men- as they age, the difference gets less stark


  • education


  • age

    • reflects shift in economic situation

    • 1979- diff between C and L was not large in 18-24

    • according to a 2019 YouGov survey, for every 10 years a person ages, the likelihood they voted Labour decreased by 8 points

    • younger people have lower turnout, so parties focus on issues affecting older voters

      • Miliband lost in 2015 after pledging to scrap tuition fees and limit pension increases

      • Tories won, pledging to maintain triple lock

    • turnout problem- disillusion, apathy, abstention


  • ethnicity

    • ethnic minorities more likely to vote L/LD than Conservative- by quite large margins

    • 60s/70s had the Tories known for anti-immigration, Powell’s ‘rivers of blood’ etc.

      • ethnicity has seemed to also line up with the class trend, identities doubling


  • regional

    • north/south and rural/urban divide has historically been entrenched

      • economic situations and areas of deprivation are unequally distributed across the UK

      • regional variations may be more rooted in economy than geography

    • NI has a different system and specific history- not so simple a trend