EdM gets a by-election ratings boost
David Cameron
| David Cameron “doing well/badly†(YouGov) | All (last week) | CON voters | LAB voters | LD voters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Well | 45(-1) | 96 | 9 | 76 |
| Badly | 48(+2) | 3 | 89 | 23 |
Ed Miliband
| Ed Miliband “doing well/badly†(YouGov) | All (last week) | CON voters | LAB voters | LD voters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Well | 33 (+5) | 17 | 66 | 32 |
| Badly | 43 (-6) | 66 | 20 | 55 |
Nick Clegg
| Nick Clegg “doing well/badly†(YouGov) | All (last week) | CON voters | LAB voters | LD voters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Well | 30(nc) | 63 | 4 | 74 |
| Badly | 60 (nc) | 27 | 92 | 24 |
Will it be sustained?
The first leadership approval ratings since Labour’s successful defence in the OES by-election are out and show a big boost for the young Labour leader. As can be seen his positives have moved up sharply while the negatives have declined.
In many ways this was to be expected. Generally speaking in polls taken place immediately after by-elections the victor’s party and party leader can expect to do well.
The big questions are whether this can be sustained and whether it will quieten some of the murmurings that we’ve seen within the red team in recent weeks.
My guess is that the “after-glow” of Old & Sad will continue for a week or so at least – a lot then will depend on whether the rather negative media narrative that he has had to endure will go on. The big thing is that he’s now proved to his party that he’s a winner.
Nick Clegg’s main numbers are unchanged but Cameron sees a bit of a slip. The Tory leader continues to enjoy support from blue voters on a scale that is far greater than that enjoyed by Clegg and EdM from their voters.
An ongoing challenge for Ed is the way he can sometimes appear – and this won’t be helped by a new website that’s just been opened featuring pictures of him looking a bit awkward.