Poll shows Labour voters are still willing to back Johnson
LONDONERS increasingly prefer Labour – but many are still willing to make an exception for Conservative mayoral candidate Boris Johnson, according to the latest YouGov poll.
It shows Labour enjoy a crushing lead of 50 to 31 in Westminster voting intentions amongst the capital’s residents.
But when asked for their mayoral voting intention this transforms into a 43 to 41 defeat, mainly thanks to Johnson’s enormous personal popularity.
Brian Paddick, the Liberal Democrat candidate, is on track to hit eight per cent of the vote – only slightly down on his result in the 2008 poll.
Independent Siobhan Benita is tied with UKIP’s Lawrence Webb on three per cent.
Green party candidate Jenny Jones trails on two per cent while the BNP’s Carlos Cortiglia can muster less than one per cent.
The survey of 1,138 voters was conducted over the weekend, in the aftermath of a torrid period for the Conservative-led coalition government.
Worryingly for Johnson’s team it suggests that just 11 per cent of voters feel he is “in touch with the concerns of ordinary people”.
When asked which candidate they would most trust to pay back a loan, 24 per cent of voters chose Johnson compared to just 17 per cent for Ken Livingstone.
Tax continues to be an issue, with almost 40 per cent of voters believing that Livingstone has not paid as much as he should and just one in ten believing he is “honest”.
But with the result within the margin of error much will come down to the ability of the respective parties to mobilise their supporters on polling day.