The gap between Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt has narrowed slightly at the end of the first full week of campaigning in the battle for the keys to 10 Downing Street, an exclusive poll reveals today.
Mr Johnson is still just ahead as having what it takes to be a good prime minister, researchers at Ipsos MORI found — but both men’s ratings have improved after a week of campaigning that has seen the lesser-known Mr Hunt benefit from increased exposure.
The survey for the Evening Standard found no evidence of damage to Mr Johnson’s image from the furore when police were called to his partner’s flat last week. Instead, his rating is up among both the public and Conservative supporters.
Key findings show:
- Mr Johnson could marginally improve the Tory vote share if he was leader rather than Mr Hunt. Some 36 per cent said they would consider voting Conservative with him in charge, compared with 32 per cent if Mr Hunt was leader. The data suggested that Mr Johnson was more attractive to voters who support other parties.
- Some 41 per cent think Mr Johnson could get a good Brexit deal, compared with 37 per cent for Mr Hunt. Over half of voters think neither could do it.
- Mr Johnson beat his rival for having “lots of personality” by 79 to 18, as “patriotic” by 64-50 but was seen as more “out of touch” by 62-53 and “more style than substance” by 54-29.
- Mr Hunt scored highest as a “capable leader” by 37 to 33, “good in a crisis” by 32-27, sound judgment by 36-27, a good representative for Britain on the world stage by 41-28 and “more honest than most” by 31-25.
- The proportion of the public who think Mr Johnson would be a good prime minister is up from 25 per cent to 34 per cent. The proportion who disagree is down from 64 to 53 per cent.
- Mr Hunt’s “good PM” score has jumped from 19 to 31 per cent, with the proportion who do not think he has the right ingredients coming down from 52 to 42.
- Some 59 per cent of Conservative supporters think Mr Johnson has what it takes, compared with 53 per cent for Mr Hunt.
- Both the Tory rivals are seen as well ahead of Jeremy Corbyn as the most capable PM. Mr Hunt outscored the Labour leader by 52-29, while Mr Johnson beat him by 51-33.
Gideon Skinner, head of political research at Ipsos MORI, said: “Conservative members get the final say on who leads their party, but amongst the public at large the race between Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt is neck and neck.”
- Ipsos MORI interviewed 1,043 adults in GB by telephone June 21 to 25. Data are weighted. Details at www.ipsos-mori.com
