Voting Behaviour and Elections
Key Debate: reasons for election and the relative
importance of different factors
Class was the most important factor until the 1970s
Majority of the working class voted for the labour party and the middle/upper
class voted tory
Tories always had a section of patriotic working class; labour had some middle-
class support
Since the 70s class dealignment has taken place, making it less important.
Thatcher and Blair’s consecutive wins as key examples
Society and economy changing, increasing affluence and tertiary sector – less
pronounces class differences + parties changing their policies to be more
inclusive
Post WWII there was lots of partisanship, influenced by tradition, class, and
community
Decline of this in the 70s and 80s – partisan dealignment. Now a lot more
swing voters.
Social factors are good determinants however less so when party policy is
extremely similar
Age is a key determinant of voting choice. In 2017 YouGov called it the new
dividing line in British politics
Older voters more likely to vote conservative while younger voters likely to vote
labour or more left wing ‘radical parties. 18% of 18–25-year-olds voted green
in 2024, just 3% of over 60s voted green and 40`% voted tory
Turnout is also much higher among older voters, around 25% in 2017
The trend that people get more conservative as they get older has not been the
case for millennials, challenging this dominance
Region is another traditionally important factor. Labour heartlands were in the
North, Scotland, and parts of Wales. Tory in the Southeast, South West, East
Midlands
In 1997 Blair picked up many tory seats in these areas and in 2019 Tories
broke the Labour red wall, however they regained dominance in 2024
Remaining 116 tory seats almost exclusively rural
Today class is of little importance, 42% of those in the AB category
(managerial) voted Conservative compared to 78% in 1964
C2 and DE more likely to vote reform than those from any other class
Key Debate: reasons for election and the relative
importance of different factors
Class was the most important factor until the 1970s
Majority of the working class voted for the labour party and the middle/upper
class voted tory
Tories always had a section of patriotic working class; labour had some middle-
class support
Since the 70s class dealignment has taken place, making it less important.
Thatcher and Blair’s consecutive wins as key examples
Society and economy changing, increasing affluence and tertiary sector – less
pronounces class differences + parties changing their policies to be more
inclusive
Post WWII there was lots of partisanship, influenced by tradition, class, and
community
Decline of this in the 70s and 80s – partisan dealignment. Now a lot more
swing voters.
Social factors are good determinants however less so when party policy is
extremely similar
Age is a key determinant of voting choice. In 2017 YouGov called it the new
dividing line in British politics
Older voters more likely to vote conservative while younger voters likely to vote
labour or more left wing ‘radical parties. 18% of 18–25-year-olds voted green
in 2024, just 3% of over 60s voted green and 40`% voted tory
Turnout is also much higher among older voters, around 25% in 2017
The trend that people get more conservative as they get older has not been the
case for millennials, challenging this dominance
Region is another traditionally important factor. Labour heartlands were in the
North, Scotland, and parts of Wales. Tory in the Southeast, South West, East
Midlands
In 1997 Blair picked up many tory seats in these areas and in 2019 Tories
broke the Labour red wall, however they regained dominance in 2024
Remaining 116 tory seats almost exclusively rural
Today class is of little importance, 42% of those in the AB category
(managerial) voted Conservative compared to 78% in 1964
C2 and DE more likely to vote reform than those from any other class
