Losing From the Inside: Cost of Conflict in the British Social Democratic Party by Patricia Lee Sykes

Author:Patricia Lee Sykes [Sykes, Patricia Lee]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Political Parties, Political Science, Political Process, General
ISBN: 9781351317382
Google: sCNHDwAAQBAJ
Goodreads: 4469095
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 1988-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Conclusion

Democratic theorists, political observers, and citizens expect parties to serve the “public good” during an election campaign in one of several ways. As a public-choice mechanism, a political party offers a leader and/or a set of policies to the electorate. As a challenger to the incumbent, a party reviews and criticizes the government’s record in office. (In this respect an election provides a referendum on the incumbent administration.) Finally, as a vehicle for education and participation, a party informs the electorate and enlists its active support. In the 1983 general election, the Social Democrats with their Liberal allies failed to perform these three roles. Admittedly, the Alliance was handicapped by its minor-party status, but intraparty conflict ensured defeat in every respect.

The Alliance machinery failed to function as an effective public-choice mechanism not only because its message was muddled by conflict but also because its leadership appeared uncertain. In addition to the question, “What does the Alliance represent?” the public asked, “Who represents the Alliance?” The answer should have been clear: Roy Jenkins was the official “prime minister designate,” but his status was shaken when Liberal leader David Steel publicly challenged Jenkins during the campaign.68 A badly divided leadership ensured confusion in the Alliance campaign.

Although a concerted effort was made to challenge Prime Minister Thatcher, the Alliance could not say that it offered a viable alternative to the Conservative government. Thatcher scoffed at the “collective leadership” of the Alliance and encouraged the media to examine a potential Alliance government rather than review her own record in office. Competitive leaders within the Alliance damaged their own cause by placing harmful accusations against one another on the campaign agenda. When Roy Jenkins and David Steel hinted that Owen’s leadership could jeopardize the Alliance, they drew attention to the tenuous nature of the pact. When David Owen promoted a “radical, left-of-center” alternative to the muddled policies of the past, he suggested that a traditional party led by Jenkins would fail to offer new, constructive solutions to persistent problems. For his part, Jenkins pointed to Owen’s brash nature and emphasized the need for moderation. Finally, David Steel exposed widespread disillusionment and a lack of confidence in Jenkins’s leadership when he challenged the prime minister designate at Ettrick Bridge (see chapter 6). During the 1983 general election campaign the question concerning the Alliance leaders was not, “Will they govern better than Margaret Thatcher?” but “Will they resolve their difficulties and survive at all?”

Both the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance failed to serve British citizens in yet another way. Preoccupied with their own power struggles, the leaders did not encourage party members to participate in any meaningful way. During the campaign the elite relied on the mass media as the essential vehicle to win votes, although in this respect the Alliance is certainly not unique.69 Nevertheless, during the 1983 general election and throughout the later development of the SDP, leadership competition drew public attention to elite conflict and away from other party activity.

In some circumstances, failure

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