Election 2017: Labour on similar voting share to Tony Blair's in 2005 election win
Two polls show Jeremy Corbyn's party reeling in the Conservatives
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Polls put Jeremy Corbyn's Labour party at the similar level of support to that which won Tony Blair his third parliamentary majority in 2005.
Surveys showed Labour reeling in the Conservatives at the weekend, following the launches of both parties' manifestos.
YouGov had Labour on 35 per cent support — just off Mr Blair's 36.2 per cent share of the actual vote in Great Britain 12 years ago — while Survation had Mr Corbyn's party on 34 per cent.
Both polls showed a sharp drop in support for the Tories.
Mr Blair managed a 66-seat majority in his final term as Prime Minister while the Tories' 33.2 per cent vote share, under Michael Howard, netted them 198 seats.
"This share of the vote is the lowest ever achieved by a party winning an overall majority at a general election," an Electoral Commission analysis said.
It was a drastic reduction from Labour's 40.7 per cent share four years earlier.
It was the Liberal Democrats who benefited from Labour's falling popularity after eight years of Blair and two years after the Iraq war was launched, winning 62 seats on a 22.6 per cent vote share.
However, the most recent surveys show them struggling to reach the 10 per cent mark, suggesting they will not return anywhere near as many MPs this time around.
Survation's latest poll found Labour had halved the Tories' lead in the space of a week, from 18 points to just nine.
YouGov also showed a nine-point gap between the two main parties.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments