The UK Independence Party Looks Set To Hand David Cameron Another Embarrassing Defeat
The telephone poll by polling group ComRes found 43% of respondents planned to vote for UKIP next month, with the Conservative Party looking a distant second on 30%.
It was widely expected that Rochester & Strood would provide a more difficult challenge for UKIP leader Nigel Farage. Even after UKIP romped home in Clacton to gain its first-ever member of parliament, earlier polls in Rochester put UKIP ahead of the Conservatives by just 9 percentage points. The UKIP lead has now increased to 13 points.
News of a slip in the polls will be particularly embarrassing for the Conservatives as they struggle to hang onto a seat they comfortably won with a majority of 10,000 votes at the last election. Mark Reckless, the man who won it for them in 2010, is now standing as UKIP's candidate after a high-profile defection in September.
Underlining the stakes, Prime Minister David Cameron made his first trip of a planned five visits to the constituency last week in a concerted effort by the Tory leadership to woo voters back ahead of the by-election. Cameron has promised to "throw everything we can" at the campaign.
In a speech to activists last month he said:
I would say one other thing to those people - you have got elected with the help of Conservatives, who stuffed envelopes, who walked streets, who knocked on doors, who worked their guts out to get you to be a member of parliament, you have let those people down. We are coming for you in by-elections and we are going to throw everything we can at you.
So far this strategy appears to have harmed his chances. Here's another ComRes poll question:
- A couple accidentally shipped their cat in an Amazon return package. It arrived safely 6 days later, hundreds of miles away.
- A centenarian who starts her day with gentle exercise and loves walks shares 5 longevity tips, including staying single
- 2 states where home prices are falling because there are too many houses and not enough buyers
- 7 Nutritious and flavourful tiffin ideas to pack for school
- India's e-commerce market set to skyrocket as the country's digital economy surges to USD 1 Trillion by 2030
- Top 5 places to visit near Rishikesh
- Indian economy remains in bright spot: Ministry of Finance
- A surprise visit: Tesla CEO Elon Musk heads to China after deferring India visit
- JNK India IPO allotment date
- JioCinema New Plans
- Realme Narzo 70 Launched
- Apple Let Loose event
- Elon Musk Apology
- RIL cash flows
- Charlie Munger
- Feedbank IPO allotment
- Tata IPO allotment
- Most generous retirement plans
- Broadcom lays off
- Cibil Score vs Cibil Report
- Birla and Bajaj in top Richest
- Nestle Sept 2023 report
- India Equity Market