Mark Penn is the pollster of choice for those politicians who still believe in the third way. He advised Tony Blair on how to win a third term in 2005, advice that cost Labour £530,372, and is now a key part of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign. So his new tome, Microtrends: The Small Forces Behind Tomorrow’s Big Changes, is sure to be pored over for hints as to where campaigning is going next.
One of the most interesting of Penn’s findings is that in the US a plurality of those who earn under a $100,000, roughly £50,000, vote for a candidates based on the issues while amongst those who earn more than that a majority make their choice based on character and personality. I’d be intrigued to find out if this holds true for the UK too. It would certainly explain why Cameron’s aroma based approach had its greatest success in the most prosperous parts of the country.
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