Voting Behaviour: Class

Question 1

Class influencing voting behaviour: for

Answer 1

Traditionally: middle class->cons->ideologies-> conserving tradition
working class->labour->ideologies->decreasing inequality
Example: 1974 consecutive: 56% middle class , 22% lower class
1974 labour: 57% lower class , 19% upper class

Question 2

Class influencing voting behaviour: against

Answer 2

Importance of class has diffused due to society evolving
Example: 2017 cons: 44% upper class , 41% lower class
2017 labour: 40% upper class , 44% lower class

Question 3

Class influencing voting behaviour: for

Answer 3

Class is more important than age because the younger generation are less likely to vote so their views are less likely to be heard -> class has a bigger impact in outcome of elections
2019: 18-24 47% turnout
2019: 65+ 75% turnout

Question 4

Class influencing voting behaviour: against

Answer 4

Class doesn’t matter: age matters more
Old people-> cons-> conserving trads-> remembering difficulties faced by labour in 1970s-> established opinions on opposing parties
2014: 47% older people voted cons
2024: 8% 18-24 voted labour
64 seen as crossover age

Question 5

Class influencing voting behaviour: for

Answer 5

Class is more influential because the impact of gender is only with the older generation -> if we look at the whole voting population the impact of gender is much lower
2017: 47% women voted cons
2017: 43% men voted cons
Highlights the minimal gender gap that shows that gender has a small influence

Question 6

Class influencing voting behaviour: against

Answer 6

Gender influences more than class
Females-> cons-> ideologies-> tradition emphasis on family (esp older women )
Males-> labour-> ideologies->labour focuses on the working people->likely to work outside jobs
2019: 56% of women 56+ voted cons
48% of men 56+ voted cons
Highlighting gender gap