Support for the different political parties running for parliament is more dynamic than ever this year. According to the most recent Capacent poll, about 25% of those who voted for the Conservatives in 2007 intend to vote for either the Social Democrats or the Leftist-Greens.
Supporters of the Leftist-Green Party are the most loyal, with 82.1% who voted for the party in 2007 saying they will do so again next week – the largest defection of 2007 Leftist-Green voters stands at 8.8%, all of them saying they intend to vote for the Social Dems this time around. Contrarily, 19.8% of those who said they voted for the Social Dems in 2007 intend to vote for the Leftist-Greens this time around.
As mentioned before, about 25% of those who voted for the Conservatives in 2007 intend to vote for either the Social Democrats or the Leftist-Greens – 12.9% and 12% respectively. Of those who voted Progressive in 2007, 10.5% say they will vote for the Social Dems this time around, while 13.7% say they will vote Leftist-Green.
The trend underlines a remarkable change of attitudes among those who previously voted for right wing and center-right wing parties, and not just with regards to Conservatives voting Leftist-Green less than two years after the fact. In 2007, the Leftist-Greens and Progressives were bitter rivals – one Leftist-Green campaign slogan was “How about a government with zero Progressives?,” a parody of the then-popular ads for Coke Zero.
The latest polls show the Leftist-Green Party continuing to grow, standing now at 28.2% when it was at 26% just last week. Social Dems, despite a small dip in support since the end of March, continues to be the largest party in the country with 30.7%. Support for Conservatives, wounded by charges of corruption and incompetence, hangs now at 23.3% – the lowest it’s been in years. The Progessives stand now at 11.1%, and the Citizen’s Movement is now at 4.4% – more than twice as strong as the flailing Liberal Party, which is at 2%.