British Election Study 2015

The British Election Study (BES) is one of the longest running election studies world-wide and the longest running social science survey in the UK.

It has made a major contribution to the understanding of political attitudes and behaviour over nearly sixty years. Surveys have taken place immediately after every general election since 1964.

The first study conducted by David Butler and Donald Stokes in 1964, transformed the study of electoral behaviour in the UK. Since then the BES has provided data to help researchers understand changing patterns of party support and election outcomes.

The 2015 Study is themed Voters in Context and is designed to help our understanding of long-term political change, and the role of national and sub-national variations in the political and social context in shaping citizens’ attitudes and behaviour.

Project website

• British Election Study 2015 website

Funder

• Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)

Grant amount

£1,250,000

Manchester people

• Professor Ed Fieldhouse
• Professor Jane Green
• Professor Hermann Schmitt
• Kathryn Simpson
• Professor Rachel Gibson

Affiliates and partners

• Professor Geoffrey Evans
• Professor Cees van der Eijk
• Jonathan Mellon
• Professor John Curtice