Voting Models

Question 1

Party identification definition 

Answer 1

Party identification model relates to the long term attachment of voters to a single party, voters consider themselves supporters of the party

Question 2

Rational choice definition

Answer 2

Rational choice is where rational voters choose a party based on personal self-interest they choose polices which they consider best for them

Question 3

Sociological model definition

Answer 3

Sociological model argues that voting behaviour is influenced by long term factors, primarily social class

Question 4

Rational choice paragraph

Answer 4

P- voters use party manifestos
E- this means when deciding who to vote for a rational voter will look at the proposed polices in a party manifesto and decide which parties policies will benefit them most
E - the conservative manifesto in 2019 said they were committed to reaching a Brexit deal and the party then went on to win 356 seats
R- party loyalty
E - people simply voting for a party often in the basis of their family having always voted for that party thus out of loyalty
E - in 2017 only 12% of voters said they did not identify with any specific party

Question 5

Party identification paragraph

Answer 5

E- people associate themselves with one party and support them through elections, voters may support the same party as their parents or identify with a party from very early on
E - in 2015 labour and conservative the 2 main party’s had 67.3% of the vote share

R - floating voters voting for not one party
E - people are alternating what party they are voting for not sticking to one main party voting based of off issues and polices of the party
E - in the 1964 general election about 48% of people said they identified “very strongly” with a party then in 2015 this figure was 17%

Question 6

Sociological model paragraph

Answer 6

E - factors such as social class social class determine the party that they will vote for, lower class are more likely to vote labour due to them tailoring their policies towards that class + upper class more likely to vote conservative
E - in 2015 45% of AB voted conservative and 26% voted labour and 27% of DE voted conservative and 41% voted labour

R- class de-alignment
E - there is a decrease in voting along class based lines, the emerge if a ‘new working class’ in the 1970s - 1980s due to a reconstruction of the employment sector in Britain
E - for example in 2019 47% of DE voted conservative and 34% voted labour

Question 7

Overall link

Answer 7

Link back to what you are arguing most relevant