We use our new AI-powered language model to categorise the stand out stories for Britons from each party’s election campaign
Shortly after the general election campaign wrapped up in early July, YouGov conducted a study to see what the public most remembered about each party during the election.
In surveys conducted between 8-10 July, Britons were asked an open question on which one news story they heard most about from each of the Labour, Conservative, Lib Dem and Reform UK campaigns. Respondents answered in their own words, with answers categorised using YouGov’s AI language model.
Party blunders the top take away from Conservative campaign
The election betting scandal, where Tory candidates and a private secretary to Rishi Sunak placed bets on a July election date, comes out on top, with 14% of Britons saying it was the news story they heard about the most during the general election campaign.
This is followed by Rishi Sunak leaving D-Day commemorations in France early to do an interview with ITV, a blunder which became the top thing 8% of people remember about the Conservatives during the election. In third place, on 6%, was the party’s pledges on immigration, including the Rwanda scheme and the ‘Stop the Boats’ slogan.
Farage the face of Reform campaign
The biggest story to come out of the Reform UK campaign was Nigel Farage taking over as party leader and running as the MP for Clacton, which was mentioned by 17% of Britons when asked which news story they heard about the most.
For 12% of Britons the party’s tough immigration stance and stop the boats rhetoric was the thing they heard most about Reform UK during the election. This rises to 22% of Reform UK voters themselves, making it the most memorable aspect for the party’s voters.
Reform UK’s campaign was marred by allegations of racism against its candidates, and this likewise stuck with many Britons. One in eleven people (9%) said stories of widespread racism across the party caught their attention the most, while an identical proportion (9%) separately cited the specific story of a Reform UK candidate being filmed making racist remarks as the most memorable story.
No stand-outs from Labour campaign
Labour tried their best to play a ‘safe’ campaign in 2024, and this may be reflected in the results, with no stand-out story visible in the results. At the top of the table are Labour’s tax plans, but only 7% of Britons cited this as the party news story they remember most. This is followed by 6% for Starmer’s leadership and performances in the debates, and an additional 6% most remember Labour’s campaign message of change.
Even among Labour voters themselves there is no dominant memory, with the most commonly referenced recollection being the slogan, at 9%.
Davey’s stunts stunned
For the Lib Dems the opposite is true, with a large portion of the public remembering one theme in particular. This is, of course, the stunts pulled by leader Ed Davey – 37% of Britons heard most about him paddleboarding, slip ‘n’ sliding, bungee jumping and Zumba dancing. No other story comes close (second place were the party’s plans for social care, at a mere 3%).
Despite this, far more Britons say no story stood out to them about the Lib Dems at the election (39%) than for the other three parties (18-19%).
See the Conservative results here
See the Reform UK results here
See the Liberal Democrat results here
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Photo: Getty
