Conservative Party members are only 200,000, but they will be responsible for choosing the new UK prime minister.
This is a predominantly male, white, and older constituency.
That’s the profile of Conservative voters, according to the Party Membership Project (PMP), a University of Sussex survey published in 2020.
voter
The UK is a parliamentary democracy, so the majority leader becomes the head of government and there is no obligation to hold parliamentary elections in case of a change of leadership in the interim period.
In the process, less than 0.3% of the UK population (67 million people) will choose their next leader.
The Conservative Party has not yet announced the exact number of members eligible to vote.
But recently, a spokesperson said the number would surpass the 160,000 people who took part in the last such vote, which ended with Boris Johnson’s victory in 2019.
The party chairman at the time, Amanda Milling, stated last year that there were around 200,000 voters on the roster.
Members who register at least three months before voting will have the right to vote and will be able to vote by mail or online until September 2nd. The result will be announced in three days.
Age, gender and ethnicity
Contrary to the wide variety of candidates in the Downing Street race, the militants of the conservative base stand out for their advanced age, being white, and mostly male.
In contrast to the roughly equal gender divide in the UK, around two-thirds are male.
A large proportion, 39% are over 65 and a fifth are between 50 and 64 years old. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), less than 20% of the UK population is 65 years or older.
The party’s electorate is also predominantly white: 96%, 10 points more than the population.
Brexit
In the 2016 Brexit referendum, 52 percent of Britons voted in favor of leaving the European Union.
Opinions are much less divided within the Conservative Party: around 75% of members support Brexit, according to the Party Membership Project.
Foreign Minister Liz Truss, one of the candidates for the presidency, advocated staying in the European Union in 2016 before becoming a staunch supporter of Brexit.
Already his rival Rishi Sunak has voted to “exit”.
social origin
Conservative Party members are generally wealthier than the general electorate: 80% are considered to belong to the middle and upper social classes, compared to 57% of Britons, according to YouGov.
Geographical distribution
Militants are largely concentrated in the south of England, particularly in London, where just over a third of the population lives. Only a fifth live in the north of England and 6% live in Scotland.
leadership qualities
According to a poll by YouGov among party members in July, candidates’ personalities rather than political promises are cited as the deciding factor in voting.
After the scandals that cast a shadow on Boris Johnson’s tenure, half of the supporters polled said the new leader’s “honesty and integrity” was important.
As for policies, respondents expressed a desire to return to “traditional conservatism” with an emphasis on reducing taxes and government spending. The idea fits with Liz Truss’ proposals, while rival Rishi Sunak is focusing on balancing the budget after the impact of the covid pandemic.
source: Noticias
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