Reform UK chairman Zia Youssuf has predicted Nigel Farage will “absolutely” be Britain's next prime minister after polls showed a populist party overtaking the ruling Labor Party for the first time.
A poll conducted this week by research firm Find Out Now showed that support for Reform Britain had soared to 24%, surpassing Sir Keir Starmer's Labor for the first time. The left-wing ruling party's approval rating has fallen to 23% just five months after its historic victory in the general election.
The so-called Conservative Party tops the poll with 26%, but Reform UK chairman Zia Youssuf says the surge in support for the renamed Brexit Party is “definitely” a downer for Nigel Farage. He said it shows momentum that could lead to a breakthrough in the city. next election.
Mr Yusuf spoke to GB News on Friday. said Regarding the possibility of Mr Farage becoming prime minister, he said: absolutely. Extrapolating data from a year ago, Reform UK had an 8% turnout and 15,000 members. As we speak today, we have 105,000 members.
“Depending on the polls, our approval rating is between 22 and 24 per cent. This has happened over the course of a year. People supported our cause in such an extraordinary way.
“Not only will these conditions not improve, they will continue to worsen at an alarming rate because this government is a bunch of ideologically-obsessed and over-promoted student politicians.”
The poll began with former Conservative cabinet minister Dame Andrea Jenkins declaring last week that her former party was “beyond redemption”, and two large-scale candidates from the Conservative Party. This was carried out against the backdrop of a large number of defectors from the party.
Dame Andrea, who lost her parliamentary seat in the general election when Rishi Sunak's party was decimated by Starmer's Labor Party, said: said Only Reform UK can “give this country the fresh start it so desperately needs”.
Mr Farage was subsequently joined by Tim Montgomery, founder of the influential Tory blog Conservative Home.
The former adviser to Boris Johnson and a member of the Conservative Party for 33 years said this week that his decision to jump ship from his former party was motivated by the release of the latest immigration figures. The results showed that net immigration reached nearly 1 million people under the previous Conservative government. government.
“It's been going on for a long time”, Montgomery said GB News. “The final sticking point for me was last Thursday's arrival numbers. How many times have you met with the Conservative Party in recent years? Did they say they have control over immigration?”
Key to any reform strategy for the next election will be to win support not only from the Conservative Party, but also from working-class and Brexit-supporting areas of the country that have traditionally supported Labour. It will target the working class who feel left out. It has become increasingly dependent on the support of wealthy urban voters and ethnic minorities.
In July's election, reformists won more than 4 million votes. However, due to the limitations of the first-past-the-post voting system, only five members were elected to the party. However, the Reform Party came second to Labor in 98 constituencies, suggesting it may be a stronger challenger to the left than the Conservatives in red-walled areas. .
