The last twelve months have been traumatic for the Conservative Party. It has elected and deposed two party leaders. It has found itself caught in a financial crisis of its own making. And most recently it has faced a still largely unresolved ‘winter of discontent’ from a public sector workforce that, like much of those who are reliant on them, is unhappy about the state of public services.
The opinion polls have long since registered their estimate of the damage this sequence of dramas has inflicted on the party’s popularity. But the local elections last week provided us with the first firm evidence from across the country of actual choices in real ballot boxes.
The results make uncomfortable reading for the Conservatives. They show the party’s popularity has taken a significant knock. However, the position may not be irretrievable.
Last week’s elections were mostly for seats that were last contested in May 2019, when the Conservatives (and Labour) were split over Theresa May’s Brexit deal and had plummeted in the polls.
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