Just over 35% of the 359 voters in the poll said they would vote for the Labour Party, with the Conservative Party in second place with 30.6% of the vote.
This represents a major swing from a poll Printweek ran in 2019 that asked readers how they were voting in the December snap election that saw the Conservative Party, led at the time by Boris Johnson, receive a majority of 80 seats.
The 2019 poll attracted 506 voters, with 49.2% at the time saying they would vote for the Conservatives, and Labour in a distant fourth place on just 8.5% behind both the Liberal Democrats on 18.4% and The Brexit Party on 17.6%.
In the 2022 poll carried out this month, Other was in third place with 12% of the vote, with the Liberal Democrats on 8.6% and the Green Party fifth with 6.4%. The Scottish National Party, Sinn Féin, Democratic Unionist Party, and Plaid Cymru tallied a total of 7.3% between them.
Support for the Conservative Party has fallen since 2019 due to reasons including the government’s handling of the pandemic, Partygate, and the current cost-of-living crisis, as well as the internal party conflict that has dominated the headlines over the last few months.
Printweek Poll Results
| 2019 | 2022 | |
| Conservative Party | 49% | 31% |
| Green Party | 1% | 6% |
| Labour Party | 8% | 35% |
| Liberal Democrats | 18% | 9% |
| Scottish National Party | 1% | 4% |
| Sinn Féin | 1% | 2% |
| The Brexit Party | 18% | n/a |
| Other | 4% | 13% |
Note: Parties that achieved less than 1% in both polls are included in other
Rishi Sunak became the new Prime Minister yesterday (25 October) after Liz Truss – who succeeded Boris Johnson after he resigned in July following a cabinet revolt – resigned from the role herself after only 45 days.
The print industry is still significantly more supportive of the Conservative Party than the general public.
The latest opinion polls have seen Labour as much as 39 points ahead of the Conservatives, with PeoplePolling research released last week putting Labour on 53 points, the Conservatives on 14 points, and the Liberal Democrats on 11 points.
But a large poll bounce is anticipated for the Conservatives following Sunak’s appointment as Prime Minister.
Addressing his shadow cabinet, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer reportedly criticised Sunak’s record as former chancellor and called him a “weak” Prime Minister, but acknowledged there would be a “significant poll bounce” for the Conservatives.
“He’s going to get a double bounce: the usual new Prime Minister bounce plus the one Liz Truss managed to bungle,” Starmer said.
YouGov’s latest MRP modelling has also found that Sunak’s personal popularity is increasing.
According to its latest favourability ratings, Sunak has moved from a net favourability score of -21 on 14 to 16 October to -9 now. 39% of Britons have a favourable view of Sunak, while 48% have an unfavourable one. He is trailing Starmer, though, whose net favourability score sits at +3.
Despite the lead for Labour in the Printweek poll, many industry figures believe Sunak should now focus on the job at hand, and the bookies' odds on a general election taking place this year are slim, with 2024 (or later) still deemed to be the most likely year of the next election.
