Tag: Liberal Democrats
Scottish Parliament election preview: Continuity and change in the Highlands and Islands
The Highlands and Islands region of Scotland covers an enormous land-mass, much of it extremely sparsely populated and remote. Traditionally, it has been a site of strength for the Liberal Democrats, however that dynamic (other than in the Northern Isles) seems to be changing. Here, Juliet Swann looks at the history of Scottish Parliament elections […]
Scottish Parliament election preview: From four party politics to further consolidation in the South of Scotland?
The Scottish Parliament elections are upon us, with the SNP expected to consolidate their current dominance over Labour and the Conservatives. Here, Alistair Clark looks at the contest in the South Scotland region, an area which has had a recent history of four party politics but may be seeing its political profile shift. Similar PostsEuropean […]
England’s 2016 local elections: an indicator of the national political picture?
England goes to the polls on 5 May to vote in a variety of elections. Tony Travers and Martin Rogers highlight a number of key contests to analyse how local elections can affect local services, and also help to reveal the national political picture. Similar PostsEuropean elections 2019: what will happen in Scotland?Scottish Parliament election […]
How democratic are the UK’s political parties and party system?
As part of the 2017 Audit of UK Democracy, Sean Kippin, Patrick Dunleavy and the DA team examine how democratic the UK’s party system and political parties are. Parties often attract criticism from those outside their ranks, but they have multiple, complex roles to play in any liberal democratic society. The UK’s system has many […]
The Carmichael case shows that we need a stronger public understanding of the key democratic role that election courts perform
Alistair Carmichael, the Liberal Democrat MP who served as the Secretary of State for Scotland in the 2010-2015 Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition, has survived the court case which threatened to strip him of his Orkney and Shetlands parliamentary seat. Heather Green follows up on her previous article for Democratic Audit, arguing that it is disappointing that public […]
Parties in coalitions find themselves caught between the need to cooperate and differentiate
The UK’s first coalition government during peacetime since 1945 ended with the electoral decimation of the Liberal Democrats at the 2015 election, with the party seemingly punished for its inability to create a compelling justification for its 2010 voters to back them again in the post-Coalition UK political landscape. Here, Inaki Sagarzazu and Heike Kluever […]
The conventional wisdom about tactical voting is wrong
Have you ever voted for another party because you felt that your party had no chance of winning the seat? If yes, then you might be among the 5 to 10 per cent of tactical voters. In this article, Michael Herrmann, Simon Munzert, and Peter Selb explain how, contrary to popular belief, the Liberal Democrats […]
Cabinet participation erodes the distinctiveness of junior coalition partners’ ‘brand’
“Cleggmania” preceded the 2010 General Election, where Nick Clegg saw his and his party’s reputation and poll share sky-rocket following his assured performance in the general election debate. However in 2015, Clegg – as Deputy Prime Minister in a minority government with the Conservatives – was almost universally unpopular, leading his party to a disastrous result […]
Contemporary politics is far too complex to be understood simply in terms of Left and Right
What does it really mean to be “right” or “left” in England today? Can we be certain that all who identify as conservative are against immigration? Or can we say that anyone opposing Trident is invariably “left”? And can we assume that one can never be both pro-immigration and “right-wing” in economic terms? Jonathan Wheatley […]
Could Labour and the Liberal Democrats merge? If so, they should look to Canada for inspiration
The Labour and Liberal Democrat Parties are both currently reeling from disastrous 2015 election results, with both in the process of electing new leaders following the resignations of Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg. But could the two parties, until recently at loggerheads, ever become one? Alex Marland argues that the two parties should look to […]
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