A PLURALITY of voters want the Tories to hold a General Election as soon as possible, new polling has found.
Some 31% of respondents told the Deltapoll survey, conducted for the Mirror, that they wanted a new Westminster election as quickly as possible, while a further 19% said they wanted one by the spring.
A further 16% of people said they wanted a vote in the summer, meaning two-thirds of British voters want an election before the autumn.
In total, just 9% said they would want to have the next General Election next autumn, while just 3% opted for next winter.
Under law, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak must hold an election before January 2025. Many expect the Tories to drag out their tenure into next autumn, although some have suggested they may opt for an early election in late spring.
Polling has suggested that the Conservatives have little hope of remaining in power, predicting a Labour landslide.
The new Deltapoll survey, of 1642 British adults interviewed online between December 22 and 29, 2023, predicted a similar victory for Keir Starmer’s party.
Starmer’s (below) party polled at 42%, compared to the Tories on 28%. Deltapoll said this could represent a Labour majority of 142.
The polling also found that 62% of Britons think life has gotten worse since the Conservatives first took power in 2010, including the majority of those who backed the party at the 2019 General Election.
Co-founder and director of Deltapoll Joe Twyman told the Mirror: "Going into 2024 and what is almost certainly an election year, Deltapoll’s results set out clearly just quite how big the challenge is now facing the Conservatives.
“Not only do Labour lead on voting intention, they similarly lead the Conservatives on fundamentals such as leader ratings and economic management, but also across a host of different issues including dealing with small boats and the rights of women and girls.
"Since the Second World War, it has never been the case that a party has come from behind on leadership ratings and economic management to win the most seats at a General Election.
“The Conservatives will hope the Budget in March will help bring about lasting change in their favour. Labour will be hoping for precisely the opposite."
The news comes after reports that, despite previously pledging never to bring him anywhere near government, Sunak had held secret meetings with Boris Johnson's former top adviser Dominic Cummings.
Staring down the barrel of almost certain defeat at the next General Election, Sunak was reportedly looking to recruit Cummings to help him turn his Tory party's fortunes around.
