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Polling the political centre

To find out the state of the centre ground today, we worked with Millbank Think Tank on a poll to understand which words people associate with their political views. The paper also proposes ways the political centre can increase its support.

A paper cover in purple on a light purple background. Under this is the words "Polling the political centre. Polling centrism and the UK political landscape". Under this is an image in purple and black of a man and a woman next to a voting booth. Under this are the words "Research paper. By Torrin Wilkins, January 30th 2023". At the bottom is a white strip with the Centre logo in pink beneath.

Polling the political centre: Polling centrism and the UK political landscape.

To find out the state of the centre ground today, we worked with Millbank Think Tank on a poll to understand which words people associate with their political views. The paper also proposes ways the political centre can increase its support.
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Quick summary

  • This paper includes polling produced by Opinium for Millbank Think Tank. It shows that the centre ground of UK politics, which we defined as Liberals and Social Democrats, represents 13% of the UK population.
  • More broadly, the poll also explored other political viewpoints on both the left and the right. Right-wing respondents, which we categorised as Conservative, right-wing, or Libertarian, received 27% of the total weighted responses. The left, made up of Socialists and left-wing supporters, only received 14%.
  • It’s clear from this polling that centrist politicians need to reach out to those on the soft left and the soft right. It is also the case that politicians on the left and right need to reach out to those in the middle ground. In short, coalition building is key.

View the data

Polling the political centre

See our interactive page with the data from our paper, interactive graphs, and polling data.

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Author

Torrin Wilkins

Director and Founder

Torrin is the Founder and Director of the Centre. His experience includes authoring over a dozen papers and over one hundred policies. His policies have been backed by an All-Party Parliamentary Group of over 260 MPs and included in various party manifestos. He regularly appears in a wide range of print and broadcast media and previously had a weekly column for a national publication. He also has a degree in Political Studies from Aberystwyth University.

Foreword

Stephen Lloyd

Former Member of Parliament

Stephen was the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Eastbourne. He held a range of front-bench roles, including as spokesperson for Northern Ireland, the DWP, and in the coalition government, as PPS to the Environment Secretary.

Editor

Joe Gellman

Joe was our Head of Research and now works as a Policy Analyst at De Havilland. He previously worked at SC Partners as a Trainee Partner and holds a Masters in Philosophy from Durham University.