Jeremy Corbyn Would Win More Votes At A General Election Than Other Labour Leadership Hopefuls, New Poll Finds

This Latest Poll Rubbishes The 'Corbyn Isn't Electable' Argument
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Labour leadership contender Jeremy Corbyn during a campaign rally at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre in Edinburgh.
Danny Lawson/PA Wire

Voters would more likely back Labour in an election under leadership frontrunner Jeremy Corbyn than any of his rivals, a new poll reveals.

The findings cast doubt on suggestions that Socialist stalwart Corbyn would send Labour into "annihilation" if elected, as predicted earlier this week by ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Frontrunner in the battle to succeed Ed Miliband, Corbyn has been subjected to claims while he might be popular among party members, he could never win over the swing voters needed to command a majority of seats in the House of Commons.

But Friday's poll from Survation, which quizzed voters on which party they would be more likely to vote for in 2020 based on Labour being fronted by each of its four leadership hopefuls, put the Islington MP seven points clear of his nearest rival - on 32%.

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Andy Burnham lagged seven points behind Jeremy Corbyn

Andy Burnham trailed on 25%, Liz Kendall won 22% of the vote and shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper received 20%.

The 1,000 person survey also found that Corbyn becoming leader made no difference to 45% of people, while just 19% claimed they would be less likely to vote Labour.

Respondents - a nationally representative sample picked with varying political allegiances - gave their answers based on a sixty-second clip of the four leadership-hopefuls being interviewed by BBC political journalist Andrew Marr.

The news came hours after ex-Scottish Labour MP Katy Clark told a Corbyn campaigning rally in Edinburgh that "he's the most electable candidate we have".

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Celebrities backing and attacking Jeremy Corbyn
ATTACK: Robert Webb(01 of10)
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The Peep Show actor said: "He's a nice guy, totally marooned in 1980s politics. And I remember the 1980s very well. The Bennites f****d Labour. And then we had 17 years of Tories. Lots of people suffered while the Left kept their splendid principles. F**k that. Come on, guys." (credit:Zak Hussein/PA Archive)
BACK: Charlotte Church(02 of10)
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The singer said: "He is one of the only politicians of note that seems to truly recognise the dire inequality that exists in this country today and actually have a problem with it. There is something inherently virtuous about him, and that is a quality that can rally the support of a lot of people, and most importantly, a lot of young people." (credit:Daniel Leal-Olivas/PA Wire)
ATTACK: Tony Blair(03 of10)
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The former Prime Minister said: "If Jeremy Corbyn becomes leader it won't be a defeat like 1983 or 2015 at the next election. It will mean rout, possibly annihilation. It doesn't matter whether you're on the left, right or centre of the party, whether you used to support me or hate me. But please understand the danger we are in. The party is walking eyes shut, arms outstretched over the cliff's edge to the jagged rocks below." (credit:JUSTIN TALLIS via Getty Images)
BACK: Maxine Peake (04 of10)
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The actor said: "For me Jeremy Corbyn is our only beacon of hope to get the Labour Party back on track, get the electorate back in touch with politics and save this country from the constant mindless bullying of the vulnerable and poor. Aspirational? Surely we should all aspire that everyone living in this country has the right to a decent quality of life." (credit:Matt Crossick/Matt Crossick)
BACK: Brian Eno(05 of10)
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The musician said: "Corbyn has a story that people want to hear. It’s positive – idealistic even – but it isn’t outlandish, although the neoliberals would like you to think it is." (credit:Michael Crabtree/PA Archive)
ATTACK: Alan Johnson(06 of10)
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The Labour grandee said: “In my view only Yvette Cooper can unite the party to win again. Those members who can’t give her their first preference should give her their second. After over a century of male leaders we have an election where the most qualified candidate to lead our party back to government happens to be a woman. Let’s end the madness and elect her.” (credit:Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire)
BACK: Mary Beard(07 of10)
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The scholar said: "If I were a member of the Labour Party, I would vote for Corbyn. He actually seems to have some ideological commitment, which could get the Labour Party to think about what it actually stands for." (credit:John Stillwell/PA Archive)
BACK: Ken Loach(08 of10)
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The film director said: ""Jeremy Corbyn, true to the best traditions of Labour, has a realistic plan to build new homes. Councils should have the power to plan and build good houses, environmentally sound, with proper infrastructure. Labour had the best Housing Minister ever in Nye Bevan. It's time for another with the same vision." (credit:Thibault Camus/AP)
ATTACK: Polly Toynbee(09 of10)
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The Guardian journalist said: "Labour people, motivated by the plight of the needy in a grossly unjust society, shouldn’t gamble the future of the weak on such a slender chance. Every Tory government impoverishes the poor and enriches the wealthy. Every Labour government makes landmark social progress. Winning next time matters desperately. A Cooper leadership offers an infinitely better hope of success." (credit:Ben Birchall/PA Archive)
BACK: Owen Jones(10 of10)
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The Guardian journalist said: "He is the very antithesis of the negative caricature of an MP: he’s defined by his principles and beliefs, uninterested in personal self-advancement, and determined to use his platform to further the interests of people and causes that are otherwise ignored." (credit:Rob Stothard via Getty Images)

"Those criticising Jeremy wouldn't have been happy with Keir Hardie [founding member of the modern Labour Party] either," she told supporters on Friday evening.

Her comments, as well as Survation's poll were received weeks after another survey of party members, registered supporters and affiliated trade unionists put Corbyn in a surprise lead on both first and second preference votes.

Carried out by YouGov for The Times, the poll put him on 53% of the vote. Burnham was second on 47%.

It also showed that based solely on first preferences, Corbyn had a lead of 17 points over his nearest rival – 43% to 26%.

Liz Kendall came fourth, meaning she would have been eliminated and her votes redistributed on a second preference basis.