The transformation and evolution of class politics: Social space and the divergence of political position-takings 1999-2023

Social groups often display distinct preferences, attitudes, and opinions—a well-established finding in the social sciences. With rising inequalities over recent decades, inter-group differences in political opinions may have similarly intensified. This paper leverages a unique, longitudinal dataset spanning 1999 to 2023 to explore these dynamics. We introduce a novel approach by constructing a social space defined by economic and cultural capital across the entire period. This framework allows us, for the first time, to trace how a wide range of sociopolitical issues shift—or remain static—within social space over time. Our findings reveal that particularly contentious issues, such as immigration and taxation, have become more sharply divided along class lines, becoming especially associated with low levels of cultural capital. Conversely, environmental protection has become more strongly associated with high cultural capital. These growing divisions are mirrored in support for political parties where these issues are central, such as the Green party. However, an analysis of changing cultural tastes suggests that these shifts may reflect a broader fragmentation of class-based lifestyles and outlooks.