The Conservative Party Leadership Election of 2016: An Analysis of the Voting Motivations of Conservative Parliamentarians. Issue 2 (28th August 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Jeffery, David; Heppell, Tim; Hayton, Richard; Crines, Andrew
• Is Part Of: Parliamentary affairs. Volume 71:Issue 2(2018)
• Page Start: 263
• Page End: 282
• Publication Date: 2017-08-28
• Subjects: Conservative Party -- Leadership Elections -- Parliamentary Behaviour -- Theresa May -- Brexit; Representative government and representation -- Periodicals; Legislative bodies -- Periodicals; Great Britain -- Politics and government -- Periodicals; Legislative bodies; Political science; Representative government and representation; Great Britain; Periodicals; Periodicals; 328.4105
• DOI: 10.1093/pa/gsx027
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0031-2290

Abstract

Abstract: This article provides the first systematic examination of the voting motivations of Conservative MPs in the final parliamentary ballot of the Conservative Party leadership election of 2016. We identify the voting behaviour of each Conservative parliamentarian as part of a unique data set that we use to test, through the use of multivariate analysis, a series of hypotheses based around social background variables (i.e. gender and education); political variables (i.e. parliamentary experience, electoral marginality, the electoral threat posed by UKIP and ministerial status); and ideological variables (i.e. attitudes towards same-sex marriage and Brexit). Our findings demonstrate that ideology did matter in terms of voting. Attitudes towards Brexit were central to the appeals of both Theresa May (to Remainers) and Andrea Leadsom (to Leavers). We also demonstrate that in terms of support for Leadsom, Brexit was not the only significant driver, as opinion on same-sex marriage, year of entry and ministerial status also influenced voting behaviour.