Boris Johnson’s approval rating among Tory voters down as many back second lockdown

Polling 1,500 Conservative voters in the lead up to the annual Conservative Party conference, researchers found that Johnson’s approval rating fell 37 points among Tory supporters and a further 55 points among the general public, giving him a net approval rating of +77% among party supporters and -11% with regular voters.

They also found that 42% of Tory voters think Johnson is performing worse now compared to before the pandemic.

More now support Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, who enjoyed a +20% boost to his net approval rating among the most disgruntled Conservative voters but whose rating among the whole cohort is at -5%.

The vast majority (64%) who think government is incompetent disapprove of the Tory Party’s position and performance on the coronavirus pandemic.

The survey found that a majority (51%) of Tory voters would support a second nationwide lockdown, with only 28% disapproving. 

A further 57% support Downing Street imposing stricter coronavirus restrictions, while under a third (31%) do not.

The poll comes as Downing Street mulls over introducing stricter lockdown measures in the face of escalating coronavirus case numbers.

Johnson also faces a second dilemma.

Although a majority (59%) support him running for re-election in 2024, a sizable minority (37%) would be happy to see him replaced before then.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak remains the top favourite with a net approval rating of +67% among Tory voters and +36% nationally.

Pollsters also found that younger 2019 Tory voters were more likely to consider voting for the Labour Party under Sir Keir Starmer than older voters: 43% of 18-to-24-year-olds would, compared to a fifth (20%) of those over 65.

Notably, the majority (51%) of those that currently view the government as incompetent would consider voting for the Labour Party under Keir Starmer.