Reform voters think the new party co-founder is more intelligent, trustworthy, hard-working and principled than the prime minister, suggesting Starmer’s attempts to woo the right aren’t working. Rivkah Brown reports.
Regardless of one’s opinion on either Corbyn or Reform, this polling data says something super interesting about Reform voters (and understanding that demographic looks increasingly important, as they continue to climb in the polls). Superficially, this data might be surprising, given that Corbyn was on the far left of the party, and Reform is typically understood to be further right than the Conservatives. However, as someone who grew up in what used to be Labour heartlands, where UKIP (and later Reform) had a strong foothold in the local council, it makes sense to me; UKIP/Reform are skilled at capitalising on working class dissatisfaction and disenfranchisement. In a sense, progressive left wing policy and anti-immigration rhetoric are two different answers to the same problem.
Regardless of one’s opinion on either Corbyn or Reform, this polling data says something super interesting about Reform voters (and understanding that demographic looks increasingly important, as they continue to climb in the polls). Superficially, this data might be surprising, given that Corbyn was on the far left of the party, and Reform is typically understood to be further right than the Conservatives. However, as someone who grew up in what used to be Labour heartlands, where UKIP (and later Reform) had a strong foothold in the local council, it makes sense to me; UKIP/Reform are skilled at capitalising on working class dissatisfaction and disenfranchisement. In a sense, progressive left wing policy and anti-immigration rhetoric are two different answers to the same problem.