Kemi Badenoch’s Bounce Back in Approval Isn't Lifting Her Party
The University of Liverpool's Dr David Jeffrey thinks "this is because Kemi's boost in net favourability is not down to people liking her more, but rather fewer people disliking her - and you don't win over voters in opposition by indifference." Dr Jeffrey's has broken out the components of Kemi's ratings:
It is no secret that Kemi Badenoch’s beginnings as Conservative party leader were difficult but it appears that there has been a recent shift with a bounce back in her favourability. Badenoch’s favourability ratings have risen since September even surpassing Farage’s ratings after her proactive dismissal of Robert Jenrick who was accused of attempting to defect to Reform “in a way designed to be as damaging as possible” for the Conservative party. As it turns out latest polls indicate that 80.5% of party members have a more favourable view of the Conservative leader than they did a year ago which is a dramatic rise and a sign that she is more secure from an internal challenge.
However, despite the boost to Badenoch’s personal ratings, there has been no boost to the Conservative Party's ratings as it appears her favourability has not translated into much needed support for her party. With the upcoming local elections in May current polling remains bleak regardless of a bounce in leadership performance . The latest voter intentions polls show Conservatives and Labour are averaging in the high teens and trailing the Greens in some polls. Reform are maintaining a significant lead across all pollsters.
The future of the Conservative Party is challenging given they lack the political space to radically change their policies yet no longer hold the dominant position whereby they win by simply being the alternative to Labour. Most painfully the Conservative Party is longer even seen to be the dominant representative of the “Right” of British Politics.
