Fragmenting politics & the case for electoral reform

As the darker evenings set in, it remains a challenging time to be in government, and also to be in the Conservative Party.

Under our two-party system, the Tories would traditionally hope to regain voters as disillusion with the Labour government grows. But this is not happening. Smaller parties are benefitting from increasing support whilst the two largest parties are losing members and voters. Several high-profile Conservatives have recently defected to Reform.

Some recent polls suggest that an election held now would push the Conservatives into fourth place, with fewer than 50 seats, whilst Reform gained a huge majority. We are a long way from the next election – and as we know, much can happen before then. But for a party that’s been a major political force for nearly 200 years, this feels like an existential crisis.