Party strategies and party-voter linkages

The weakening of enduring sources of partisanship, the rise of issue voting, and increased volatility in the electorates of many western countries during the 1970s and 1980s have renewed interest in party strategies. Both the proportions of voters switching parties and making up their minds late in the campaign have grown, and their growing numbers obviously have implications for the strategies of parties. Similarly, the erosion of partisan attachments and declining party membership give cause to reconsider the nature of party-voter linkages.