LESSONS OF HISTORY - CORE AND PERIPHERY IN BRITISH ELECTORAL-BEHAVIOR, 1910-1992

Models of voting behaviour based on socialization or rational choice fail to explain the growing north-south divide in British general elections. Recent elections show the re-emergence of a core-periphery dimension that replicates pre-1914 electoral alignments. This paper gives evidence for the persistence of a core-periphery cleavage in British politics. It also seeks to show that any explanation of recent electoral behaviour in Britain must, as in the Lipset/Rokkan core-periphery model, comprehend the historical and developmental aspects of electoral change.