Explain and analyse two factors that can influence voting behaviour.

One factor that can influence voting behaviour is social class. Social class something each individual is in based on how much wealth they have, and ranges from working, middle and upper class. This factor affects voting behaviour as some political parties may be more beneficial to you and your social class than others, through tax cuts for the upper class or expansion of the welfare state for the working classes. For example, the Labour Party - commonly seen as a party for the working classes - received 44% of the overall working class vote (social classes D and E) in the 2017 General Election. However, social classes have been moving away from their traditional party lines as was seen in the 2019 General Election where they same social classes D and E voted 47% for the Conservative Party and only 34% for Labour.
A second factor that can influence voting behaviour is age. Age is a factor that has become an increasingly divisive factor in voting intention in British politics. It is understood that young people have a more optimistic and idealistic view of the world they live in, with a strong sense of social justice which is why they tend to lean more towards voting for left wing parties like Labour or the SNP in Scotland. On the other hand, people ages 50 and over tend to vote overwhelmingly for the Conservative party due to their policies on low taxation, strong national image and protecting pensions and savings. For example, in the 2019 General Election saw 56% of 18-24 year olds voting labour compared to just 21% voting Conservative showing a large 35 point gap. Similarly with those aged 70 and over voted 67% for the Conservatives with only 14% voting Labour. With these large differences between age demographics it shows very clearly that age is a major factor that can influence voting behaviour.