Justin Fisher

David Denver

Charles Pattie

Steve Ludlam

This volume features key political issues for 1990s Britain: the reform of the Labour party; the use of opinion polls; the impact of the media; European integration; Scotland and regional trends; and the bases of party support.

British Elections and Parties Review

Mark Garnett

The first book to look at a succession of British general elections in significant detail. By starting the survey in 1964 rather than the traditional date of 1945, it can also focus more rigorously on the changes which began in the 1960s and still affect general elections today.

Diversity, Dealignment, and Disillusion

British General Elections Since 1964

John Benyon

Central Debates in British Politics focuses on British politics in a changing social, economic and institutional context. The book explores issues and debates using a variety of approaches and techniques. It is written and edited by a team of leading experts who analyse key issues in a highly structured and thematic manner.

Central Debates in British Politics

Despite a recent decline in voter turnout, British general elections are still the centrepiece of Britain's liberal democracy and their results make a real difference to every British citizen. They command strong media interest long before their dates are announced and even uneventful campaigns dominate the headlines. The 2010 general election saw the first direct televised debates between the main party leaders, adding further interest to a battle which was always likely to be close. The result was a 'hung parliament' and the first British coalition government since 1945. However, as this book shows these were only the latest manifestations of a transformation in British elections which began in the early 1960s. While some election rituals remain intact - the counting of votes by hand, the solemn declaration of individual constituency results and, most importantly, the peaceful handover of power if the incumbent party loses, almost everything of significance has changed. Voters have very different attitudes; fewer of them have party loyalties which are more than skin deep, and they tend to base their choices on 'short-term' factors such as the perceived competence of the parties and the image of the leader. The parties themselves are barely recognisable from the institutions of 1964 - not least because their membership figures have dwindled dramatically. Election campaigns are now heavily centralised, and focus obsessively on a handful of target seats. This book reviews the history of British general elections since 1964, charting the changes in voters and parties at every step. In parallel, it shows how electoral analysts have responded to these developments. The first book of its kind, it will be invaluable to readers with a general interest in British politics, as well as to undergraduate and postgraduate students of the subject.

Christopher Carman

Robert Johns

• How do voters in Britain decide which party to vote for in elections? • Why do smaller parties get more support than they used to? • How do the mass media influence political opinions? The authors examine these and other questions in the third edition of this popular text. They trace the evolution of the British electorate over the post-war period, and focus in particular on recent elections – from Labour's victories in the 2000s through to the hung parliament of 2010. As well as examining and explaining theories of party choice – including the view that voters' evaluations of government performance and party leaders are now the key determinants of election outcomes – the authors also devote separate chapters to turnout trends and patterns, electoral systems and the geography of party support. Campaigning, opinion polls and the mass media are also considered. Fully revised, the text incorporates the latest research on elections and voting behaviour, and includes analysis of recent trends and developments – including how 'new media' are affecting election campaigning.

David Denver

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