'I Went with What I Always Do ...': A Qualitative Analysis of 'Cleggmania' and Vote Choice in the 2010 British General Election

We use focus group transcripts from the innovative Qualitative Election Study of Britain data set to provide insights into why 'Cleggmania' failed to translate into electoral success for the Liberal Democrats in 2010. Analyses conducted on participants' vote choice stories indicate the effect of 'Cleggmania' was limited to strengthening the resolve of wavering Liberal Democrats. Long-time Labour and Conservative supporters who leaned Liberal Democrat before the election found their latent party identification made voting for a different party psychologically uncomfortable. Qualitative electoral research can advance our understanding of people's voting calculus by analysing narratives for values, identity, utility maximising and constituency dynamics.