How have Britons reacted to the general election?

Matthew SmithHead of Data Journalism
Politics & current affairs
May 24, 2024, 5:00 PM GMT+0

The public are most likely to be pleased by the news that a vote will be held in July

Rishi Sunak surprised many on Wednesday when he announced that the general election would be held on 4 July – not least among his own party.

So how have Britons reacted to the unexpected election? The public are more likely to have reacted positively (43%) than negatively (27%), with a further 30% giving expressions of disinterest.

In terms of specific emotions, Britons are most likely to say they are “pleased” (29%) and “optimistic” (24%), but also “indifferent” (25%).

A further 15% are “pessimistic”, while 14% are “excited” and 9% are already “bored”.

Given that Labour are widely expected to win the coming election, it should be no surprise to see that those currently intending to vote for the party are overwhelmingly likely to give positive responses (75%).

By contrast, only 22% of those planning to vote Conservative have reacted positively to the snap election. More than a third have reacted negatively (38%), while a similar proportion are indifferent or bored of the affair (37%).

See the full results here

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Photo: Getty

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