Policy Representation, Social Representation and Class Voting in Britain

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Abstract

Why does the strength of class voting vary over time? Recent research has emphasized factors to do with the structure of political choice at the party level. This article examines different aspects of this choice, and investigates whether voters are more likely to respond to the social cues or policy cues that parties send voters. The results from the British context suggest that the former are more important than the latter. The central implication of this finding is that social representation matters, and that the social background of political representatives influences the ways in which voters relate to political parties.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)173-193
Number of pages21
JournalBritish Journal of Political Science
Volume45
Issue number1
Early online date13 Nov 2013
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jan 2015

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