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Angus Reid Global Monitor : Polls & Research
Britons Express Support for Eventual PM Brown
Credit:UN/DPI Photo
Gordon Brown
(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Current chancellor of the exchequer Gordon Brown would command the Labour party to a new victory in Britain's next general election, according to a poll by YouGov published in the Daily Telegraph. 46 per cent of respondents say they prefer a Brown-led Labour government, while 37 per cent would rather have an administration headed by Conservative party member David Cameron.
In May, British voters renewed the lower house of Parliament. The governing Labour party secured 35.2 per cent of the vote and 356 seats, followed by the Conservatives with 32.2 per cent and 197 legislators, and the Liberal Democrats with 22 per cent and 62 lawmakers. Following the election, Tory leader Michael Howard vowed to stand down.
The process to select the new Conservative leader began last month. After two elimination ballots open only to Conservative MPs, the 39-year-old Cameron and 56-year-old David Davis are now the only candidates in contention. The new leader will be chosen in a postal ballot open to the 300,000 Conservative members in Britain. The results will be announced on Dec. 6.
In October 2004, current prime minister and Labour leader Tony Blair announced that he would retire at the end of his third term. 24 per cent of respondents believe Brown would make a better prime minister than Blair, 19 per cent say Brown would be worse, and 47 per cent say it probably will not make a great deal of difference.
The next election to the House of Commons must be held on or before Jun. 3, 2010. Sitting prime ministers can dissolve Parliament and call an early ballot at their discretion.
Polling Data
If you had to choose, which would you prefer, a Conservative government led by David Cameron, or a Labour government led by Gordon Brown?
Labour with Brown | 46% |
Conservative with Cameron | 37% |
Don't know | 17% |
Tony Blair will retire as prime minister before the next election and Gordon Brown will almost certainly succeed him. Looking ahead, what is your view?
Gordon Brown will probably make a | 24% |
He will probably make a worse prime minister | 19% |
He will probably not make a | 47% |
Don't know | 10% |
Source: YouGov / Daily Telegraph
Methodology: Online interviews with 2,616 British adults, conducted from Nov. 22 to Nov. 24, 2005. No margin of error was provided.
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