Constituency campaigning at the 2019 general election

Constituency level campaigning has become crucial to the electoral strategies of all the major parties in Britain, and a significant academic literature – initially regarded as ‘revisionist’ – has emerged. This work – now regarded as mainstream – has revealed many things including how campaigns have changed over time; how parties have responded to wider changes in society, the electorate, and within their own parties; and the degree to which parties are able to harness their resources effectively to fight elections. They have also informed discussions about power within parties – how far central party organisations are able to coordinate constituency party campaigns and how much is left to the grass-roots. And finally, they have furthered our understanding of how voters respond to cues from the parties, and the extent to which voters can be mobilized.

This study will examine constituency campaigning at the 2019 British General Election and will provide not only a continuation of a unique and valuable time series that began in 1992, but also a programme of innovation that furthers our understanding of the impact, role, and nature of campaigns in the modern political arena.

The study will seek to address four underlying research questions:

  • What is the electoral impact of constituency campaigns?
  • How have campaign techniques evolved?
  • How are party campaign organisations evolving?
  • What is the impact of constituency campaigns on different groups of electors?

Publications

We have published many articles analysing constituency campaigning. A selection of them are listed here, with some available for free download:

Meet the Principal Investigator(s) for the project

Professor Justin Fisher
Professor Justin Fisher - After nearly three years working in market research, I took my first degree and then moved on to a PhD, which was funded by the ESRC. After nine years as a lecturer at London Guildhall University, I moved to Brunel in 2000, where I was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2003 and then to Professor of Political Science in 2006. After serving as Head of Politics & History (2004-2007), I was appointed Director of the Magna Carta Institute in 2009 and combined that role with being Deputy Head of School of Social Sciences (Research). I was Head of the School of Social Sciences between 2012 and 2014, Head of the Department of Politics, History & the Brunel Law School between 2014 and 2017, and Head of the Department of Social and Political Sciences between 2017 and 2020. I was appointed as Director of the University's Policy Unit - Brunel Public Policy - in September 2020. Qualifications: PhD Government (Brunel) BA (Hons) Politics & Government (City of London Polytechnic)

Related Research Group(s)

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Magna Carta - We analyse how best to create and maintain just societies that fairly balance both personal freedom and authority, and the rights and responsibilities of individuals and society.

Partnering with confidence

Organisations interested in our research can partner with us with confidence backed by an external and independent benchmark: The Knowledge Exchange Framework. Read more.

Project last modified 11/09/2023