What do voters want from their local MP?

Vivyan, Nick; Wagner, Markus

Abstract

This article summarises the findings from a study of what constituents want from their local Member of Parliament.1 We make use of a survey technique known as conjoint analysis, wherein we present a national sample of British voters with profiles of hypothetical MPs who vary randomly in their characteristics, activities and behaviour. We find that voters like MPs who are independent from the party line and who do not focus exclusively on national policy work. MPs' gender and experience matter far less to constituents. Overall, voters want a Parliament made up of strong-minded MPs who see their role as that of a constituency representative. This has important implications for parliamentary democracy in Britain.

Citation

Vivyan, N., & Wagner, M. (2015). What do voters want from their local MP?. The Political Quarterly, 86(1), 33-40. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-923x.12128

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Online Publication Date: Jan 28, 2015
• Publication Date: Jan 28, 2015
• Deposit Date: Jan 27, 2015
• Publicly Available Date: Jun 3, 2015
• Journal: Political Quarterly
• Print ISSN: 0032-3179
• Electronic ISSN: 1467-923X
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Not Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 86
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 33-40
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-923x.12128
• Keywords: Constituency service, Members of Parliament, Rebellion, Representation, Survey experiments.
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1413590