What are the main social cleavages that interest political scientists?

Social cleavage is a division between political parties and Social class, religion, geographic regions,urban/rural areas and interset groups. These are significant because they generally determine party affiliation and how to appeal to each group. Karl Marx believed middle and upper class citizens to be mostly conservetives, while the working class were more progressive, however social class alone does not determine political affiliation. Religion is a better determining factor than social class because people who are affiliated with their specific religion tend to vote along the lines of what their church or other religious institution holds to be important. Rrural areas tend to lean more to the left especially where development is still in progress, compared to modernized cities or urban areas where living conditions are better and education is more readily available. Goegraphy is important because of the differing view points in sections of regions. An example might be Ireland and the struggle between the north and south for political dominance.