The rise of the "local Conservatives" is an interesting development in British politics.
twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1521806308118343680?s=20&t=sfkJjuUO8Gq2IsVVzoD1Dg
I am old enough to remember when the leadership / locality situation was rather different, and Conservative candidates appeared on the ballot paper as "David Cameron's Conservatives".
At the time, the logic was that Cameron was more popular than his party. So, in an effort at brand association, they wanted voters to be thinking about voting for him and not the Conservative party.
It does not bode well for Boris Johnson that his own councillors are so publicly disavowing him. For them, the reverse logic is true: the Johnson brand is a drag on their own political fortunes, and undermines their campaigns.
There is data on this from @yougov. Boris Johnson became less popular than the Conservative Party generally in January.
yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/articles-reports/2022/01/28/boris-johnsons-favourability-now-lower-conservativ
One problem for the Tories (and a big reason why I suspect Labour will not be unhappy if Conservative MPs don't move against Johnson in the next few weeks) is contagion of Johnson's unpopularity to the wider party.
One way to understand "Local Conservatives" is a pretty desperate effort to stop that, but it certainly is not a long term solution.
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Nick Anstead
@NickAnstead
Assoc Prof working on political communication & political ideas @MediaLSE. Also 🧵 nickanstead.
