'They were sick of us': New poll show Brits don't care about next Tory leader
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A new Ipsos poll has found that two thirds of the UK public have no interest in the Conservative leadership race.
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In brief...
- 62% of Brits are indifferent to the next Conservative leader, with only 35% following with interest.
- Tory voters and Reform UK supporters show higher interest in the leadership outcome.
- The race features right-wing and moderate candidates, with James Cleverly seen as the strongest contender in the new poll.
What's The Story?
A new poll has shown 62% of Brits couldn’t care less who takes over as leader of the opposition when Rishi Sunak steps down later this year.
The same poll found that 35% of people care a great deal.
It’s not great news for those in the running to take the top Tory job – Kemi Badenoch, Dame Priti Patel, Tom Tugendhat, Mel Stride, James Cleverly and Robert Jenrick.
The News Agents will be digging into this in today’s episode, and trying to get to the bottom of why so few people care.
Jon Sopel discusses the Conservative Party leadership race
Why is this important?
Whoever wins the Conservative leadership race will hold a key position in UK politics, as leader of the opposition.
Their role will be to hold Keir Starmer's Labour government to account in the House of Commons, and is an important one in UK democracy.
All the leadership challengers have spoken about their goal of returning the Conservatives to power when the next UK general election comes around in 2029.
It will also shape the future of the party, and whether it takes a moderate position going forward, or moves toward the right.
Badenoch, Patel and Jenrick are seen as the more right-wing candidates, while Cleverly, Tugendhat and Stride are considered more moderate.
What else do you need to know?
The poll was conducted by Ipsos, one of the UK’s leading polling companies.
Despite the lack of interest from the general public, the poll did find that 62% of people who voted for the Tories in 2024 had a vested interest in the party’s next leader.
There was also a notable interest from Reform UK voters, with 40% of people who gave their vote to Nigel Farage and co also saying they had an interest in the outcome of the leadership race.
James Cleverly was named in the poll as the contender most likely to make a good or fairly good leader, while Priti Patel was voted the most likely to be very, or fairly bad, in the role.
A spokesperson for Ipsos has described the general public’s thoughts on the leadership race as “apathy”.
They add that this may stem from most people not knowing many of the names hoping to take the job, when the new leader is announced on 2 November 2024.
"A significant portion of Britons are unfamiliar with the main candidates and say they do not care very much about who will emerge as the winner," they added.
What was said on The News Agents?
Speaking with Kwasi Kwarteng, former Chancellor of the Exchequer under Liz Truss, Jon Sopel asked why he thought Brits weren't interested in the next Tory leader.
Kwarteng's response was swift – and direct. "They were sick of us," he says.
"They booted us out of office."
"And so it doesn't surprise me that a large majority don't want to hear from Tories and aren't interested in who the leader is."
He declines to pledge support for any of the candidates in the running for leader, but believes interest in Conservatives will return as the dust settles on the new Labour government.
"I think it's quite normal for electorates just to move on, and they will get more interested in what the Tory party is saying once the government's honeymoon has ended," he adds.
"When we reach the mid term, there'll be difficulties the government faces, and I think oppositions become much more relevant."
Listen in full on The News Agents.
