Wednesday 15 June 2016

Welsh Party Slogans not recognised by electors.

Last April I asked the question 

How much attention should we pay to Manifesto's anyway.


I prompted to ask it again  because of piece  from Election in Wales on the Campaign Slogan of the six major parties for last Mays assembly elections

Professor Scully  writes.

In the immediate post-election survey that we ran with our sample of voters (and non-voters), we tried to see to what extent the various parties’ main slogans had cut through to the electorate. We presented them with the main slogans from the six parties that were represented in the main leaders’ debates. And we asked people if they could identify which party that slogan belonged to. To prevent people googling the answers, they were given only a limited amount of time to answer each one. (I believe they had 30 seconds only for each slogan).
The Slogan of course would have been prominent on the Manifesto and appear on elections leaflets.

Were the sample of voters given the Slogans one by one or were they allowed to see them all and then answer?


Anyway it looks like the the agonising by Party Wonks over this  was on vain.

‘Together for Wales’
Labour11%
Conservatives3%
Plaid Cymru9%
Liberal Democrats3%
UKIP1%
Greens2%
Don’t Know72%

A t least Labour can claim they slight;y won the recognition battle though   as wee will see the majority  seemed to have not have recognised any of the slogans 
‘Securing Real Change for Wales’
Labour4%
Conservatives7%
Plaid Cymru9%
Liberal Democrats3%
UKIP4%
Greens2%
Don’t Know71%

 Small majority thinking this was Plaid's Slogan  and indeed t may be that  was because 
‘The Change Wales Needs’
Labour4%
Conservatives7%
Plaid Cymru9%
Liberal Democrats2%
UKIP5%
Greens3%
Don’t Know71%

 Was Plaid;;s so very much the same 
‘A Wales That Works For You’
Labour13%
Conservatives5%
Plaid Cymru7%
Liberal Democrats3%
UKIP2%
Greens1%
Don’t Know69%

Maybe there  was a correlation in people;s minds  between Labour and Work
‘A Strong Voice for Wales’
Labour9%
Conservatives4%
Plaid Cymru17%
Liberal Democrats2%
UKIP2%
Greens2%
Don’t Know66%

Most of those who identified the Slogan plumped for Plaid , Thge Parties could not be further apart
‘Shake Up the Senedd’
Labour2%
Conservatives2%
Plaid Cymru7%
Liberal Democrats1%
UKIP13%
Greens4%
Don’t Know71%

Apart from perhaps the Greens and Ukip and most who plumped , went for the latter. 
Maybe the problem with Manifesto is only a small number read them and the reports usually come when Opposition  Parties tear them apart .
Which may explain why most of the Manifestos (apart from Plaid's) were short on detail
One wonders whether the hours spent on how ti present the campaign should consider other ways of connecting with the electorate,

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