Grey Power, School Gate Mums and the Youth Vote: Age as a Key Factor in Voter Segmentation and Engagement in the 2005 UK General Election.

Author: Davidson, Scott

Source: Journal of Marketing Management, Volume 21, Number 9, November 2005 , pp. 1179-1192(14)

Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group

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Abstract:

This paper seeks to examine attempts by the main political parties in the UK general election of 2005 to segment the electorate according to their age and position within the life cycle. Particular attention is given to product adjustments and the party campaigns for the votes of older people, the "grey vote", as the political market shifts profoundly driven both by demographics, the ageing of the population, as well as by electoral behaviour, the declining participation of younger voters. Consideration is also given to segmentation of voters in the first age, the "youth vote", and the second age, "Generation Jones" and "school gate mums". The paper moves on to discuss age and segmentation in the context of elections remaining essentially mass communications campaigns, and the responses within civil society to the apparent power allocated to sub-groups identified as priority targets.

Keywords: POLITICAL COMMUNICATIONS; POLITICAL MARKETING; GREY VOTE; SEGMENTATION; GENERAL JONES; SCHOOL GATE MUMS; POPULATION AGEING

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1362/026725705775194139

Publication date: 2005-11-01

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