Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - The Popularity of British Prime Ministers
AU - Denver, David
AU - Garnett, Mark
PY - 2012/2
Y1 - 2012/2
N2 - Prime ministers have been crucial figures in British politics for nearly three centuries and the media now give them more prominence than ever. Polling data on prime ministerial popularity suggest that there has been an increasing tendency for voters to take a negative view of the incumbent prime minister. Moreover, almost every post-war premier has left office less popular than when he or she took over. This trend has not affected opposition leaders, however. Despite the fact that they dominate media coverage of British politics, voters' reactions to prime ministers are less good predictors of party preferences than appraisals of the general competence of the government. This suggests that while valence theorists are right to draw attention to the role of party leaders as a means of providing voters with a ‘short cut’ in decision-making, the importance of leader evaluations should not be exaggerated.
AB - Prime ministers have been crucial figures in British politics for nearly three centuries and the media now give them more prominence than ever. Polling data on prime ministerial popularity suggest that there has been an increasing tendency for voters to take a negative view of the incumbent prime minister. Moreover, almost every post-war premier has left office less popular than when he or she took over. This trend has not affected opposition leaders, however. Despite the fact that they dominate media coverage of British politics, voters' reactions to prime ministers are less good predictors of party preferences than appraisals of the general competence of the government. This suggests that while valence theorists are right to draw attention to the role of party leaders as a means of providing voters with a ‘short cut’ in decision-making, the importance of leader evaluations should not be exaggerated.
KW - Prime Ministers
KW - Opinion Polls
KW - Voting
U2 - 10.1111/j.1467-856X.2011.00466.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1467-856X.2011.00466.x
M3 - Journal article
VL - 14
SP - 57
EP - 73
JO - British Journal of Politics and International Relations
JF - British Journal of Politics and International Relations
SN - 1369-1481
IS - 1
ER -