Synopses & Reviews
In
Money and Electoral Politics, Ron Johnston and Charles Pattie draw on the latest researchand#151;including much unpublished materialand#151;to explore the financial differences between the United Kingdomand#8217;s three main political parties in the four years leading up to the 2010 General Election. They look at how much local party branches raised and at the profound influence financing had on candidate performance. They show that fundraising at local levels often fell significantly short, suggesting a major problem with state of grassroots organizingand#151;the capacity to effectively engage voters is confined to a relatively small number of constituencies. The result is an important contribution to the continuing debates on campaign finance, both in the United Kingdom and elsewhere.and#160;
Review
and#8220;An interesting new twist on the debate. . . . [Johnston and Pattie] suggest that the poverty of local campaigns is as much a symptom as a cause of democratic malaise, and that while more money would help increase contact between parties and voters, it is not a simple solution to political disengagement.and#8221;
Synopsis
In this study of grass-roots election campaigning, the authors survey the evolution of campaigning over the past century and describe how the parties organized their constituency campaigns in the 1992 election. They examine and evaluate the campaign techniques used.
About the Author
Ron Johnston is professor of geography at the University of Bristol.Charles Pattie is professor of geography at the University of Sheffield.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Follow the Money: Cash, Party and Electioneering in Britain
Money Matters: Local Campaigns at British General Elections
The Financial Health of Local Parties: the Key to Electoral Success?
Raising the Money: Donations to Local Parties
Party Funding Futures
In Conclusion