Voting Behaviour in the United Kingdom - Essay Example

What are the main factors affecting voting behaviour in the United Kingdom Table of contents Introduction 2. The main factors influencing voting behaviour in the United Kingdom 3. Conclusion 1. There are many important political, economical and sociological factors affecting voting behaviour in the United Kingdom, and these factors are necessary to be taken into account by political and social institutions. The issue of these factors analyzing is increasingly important in this age of numerous psychological and sociological approaches to voting behaviour. Many people believe that such factors as age, gender, income, ethnicity and some others don't influence voting behaviour very much, and that they are not changing, but these people overlook the fact that there are some significant tendencies in people's voting behavior in the United Kingdom which are clearly visible and should be carefully analyzed. Furthermore, some of these factors play more important role than the other ones, and different voting campaigns show different tendencies. This paper will argue that such factors as age, gender, income, ethnicity and some others can influence voting behaviour in the United Kingdom, and that it is very important for sociologists, politicians and PR specialists to take into account the combination of these factors. 2. The most significant factors of voting behaviour in the United Kingdom are social class, geography, age and background, public opinion and media. Social class of voters is concerned as the most important factor: "When voting analysis began in 1945 it became clear that social class was the most important factor in the way people traditionally voted. People tended to vote according to their natural class" (Voting Behaviour). It is evident that upper and middle classes tend to vote Conservative, while upper and lower working class votes for Labour, but actually this tendency has changed - it is connected to the media activity and the politics of Conservative party which tries to attract the population of lower income, while the Labour party politics moves to the right.1 This tendency can also be explained by the changing of the population structure in the last half of the 20th century: "Since the 1970s, the number of manual workers has fallen from nearly 50% of the population to just 33%. This is because of the changes in employment patterns, educational opportunities and the rising standard of living" (Voting Behaviour). But in spite of that the factor of social class is still rather strong in British voting behavior. In addition to that, the household also plays very important role in voting pattern in the United Kingdom. People who live together traditionally vote for the same party, and this factor should also be taken into account: "Since we expect members of households to vote together, this means that the number of households in which all members vote for the same party should be greater than expected, whereas the number in which different members vote for different parties (or abstain) should be less than expected" (Johnston et al., 2003). Geographical location of voters also affects voting behaviour in the United Kingdom. The north of the UK, as well as Wales, tends to vote for Labour, while the southern part of the country usually votes for Conservative: "In 2001, the southern part of England voted 56.3% for the Conservative Party whilst the north of England, Scotland and Wales voted 82.4% in favour of the Labour Party" (Voting Behaviour). This tendency is connected to the historical and industrial development of different regions in Great Britain: the north and Wales are industrial regions where trade unions activity is traditionally high, and the population mostly votes for Labour. The factor of age also plays role in political preferences in Great Britain. Often people under 35 vote for Labour while older people vote for Conservative. This tendency can be explained by the Labour party politics directing younger population: "Those under 35 tend to vote Labour and the Conservative vote increases with age. This may be because Labour was traditionally seen to be the idealistic party vote, looking for a more egalitarian society" (Voting Behaviour). And it is significant that people under 34 are less likely to vote than those of older age, as older citizens have more respect to the state and politics than younger. The factor of gender also must be estimated during voting campaigns: women tend to vote for attractive politicians whose image is positively shaped and whose political programs are oriented to traditional family values. This tendency of voting behaviour in the United Kingdom has the same attributes as in other countries. Ethnicity also should be taken into account analyzing voting behaviour in the United Kingdom. Traditionally, ethnic minority members tend to vote for Labour: "The Labour party has tended to benefit from the ethnic minority vote, especially the Afro-Caribbean vote. This may be because, in the past, Labour policies have seemed more sympathetic towards ethnic minorities" (Voting Behaviour). Parties try to form public opinion which can influence British voting behaviour. The leading political forces of the country release their manifestos, declarations and programmes where they formulate their aims and goals. So, the parties try to pay attention to their basic social and economical principles which should be adequately accepted by voters. It is necessary to use this factor very skilfully and pay attention to the possible public outcome; otherwise the parties can loose their voters: "The Liberal Democrats undoubtedly lost votes in 1997 when they claimed that they would increase income tax to pay for education. The disunity in the Conservative Party over European issues rather than focusing on domestic affairs was also a factor in their defeat in 2001" (Voting Behaviour). Public opinion is also formed by mass media means which reflect different parties' points of view. People read newspapers, watch TV and listen to the radio, and they involuntarily are influenced by different political information. So, potential voters form their own opinion according to the information they see and hear. The editorial opinion often is of high importance for those who buy some newspapers regularly or watch certain TV programs: "People tend to buy the same newspaper regularly, often for reasons other than its political stance. But they will be influenced by its editorial opinions" (Voting Behaviour). So, it is possible to say that global mass media corporations and individuals are able to influence voting behaviour in the United Kingdom - it is one of the disadvantages of the political system. Depending on current economical and political situation, the role of mass media in voting behaviour forming can be changed. For example, between 1992-1997 "readers of those newspapers that were traditionally pro-Conservative but which during this period were more critical were not particularly likely to remain loyal to the Conservative" (The British Election Panel Study 1992-1997). The factors indicated above can be changed under the influence of social and economical conditions. Social structure of the population is changing, and the voters' preferences are not constant. Such significant factors as employment, household, family structure, income level and lifestyle can also be changed, and it leads to the voting behaviour changes in the United Kingdom. Such fluctuation of voting behaviour can be explained by the changing of the economical and social situation in the United Kingdom, as well as in the world. Foreign-policy events which concern the United Kingdom also influence the British voting behaviour, as they are associated with the activity of the government and its policy outcomes: "When asked to identify the most important issue facing the country, nearly half (48%) of the respondents in the 2005 BES pre-election in-person survey cited either crime, immigration, Iraq or terrorism. Only 6% had cited these issues in 2001" (Clarke H. et al., 2005). So, it is possible to say that people vote for those political forces which reflect their basic desires and needs at the moment of voting. 3. The paper has discussed the most significant and important factors of voting behaviour in the United Kingdom which can explain why people vote in a way they do. As was shown above, these factors are: social structure of the British society, geographical location of regions, age status of voters, the factors of gender and ethnicity and the influence of mass media means on public opinion. All these factors should be carefully analyzed by political scientists and sociologists. As the evidences show (see above), these factors are changing - these fluctuations depend on general economical and social situation in the United Kingdom and in the world and appropriate measures of the government. Political forces, leaders and mass media corporations have ability to influence the public opinion by different means. These factors of influence will become increasingly dominant in the coming century as PR and mass media technologies are constantly developing. Finally, modern tendencies of world political development and the UK government inner and foreign policy continue to influence and change voting behaviour in the United Kingdom, and these changes affect the results of election campaigns and every day life of the United Kingdom citizens. Sources The British Election Panel Study 1992-1997. Introduction to CREST. Accessed 22.01.2006. http://www.crest.ox.ac.uk/intro.htm Clarke H. et al. (2005). Taking the bloom off New Labour's rose: party choice and voter turnout in Britain, 2005. The British Election Study at the University of Essex. Accessed 22.01.2006. http://www.essex.ac.uk/bes Education. Higher Bitesize Revision. UK government and politics (2006). Voting Behaviour. BBC. Accessed 22.01.2006. http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/education/bitesize/higher/modern/uk_gov_politics/elect_vote2_rev.shtml Johnston Ron et al. (2003).A missing level in the analysis of British voting behaviour: the household as context as shown by analyses of a 1992-1997 longitudinal survey. School of Geographical Sciences, University of Bristol, BS8, ISS, UK. Accessed 22.01.2006. http://www.ccsr.ac.uk/methods/publications/Working%20Paper%203.pdf Read More