Most people in Wales don't know who they'd prefer to be the next First Minister, says new poll
New polling seen exclusively by ITV Wales suggests that most people in Wales don't know who they'd prefer to be the next First Minister and those that do are nearly evenly split over which of the two candidates they’d prefer.
According to the survey carried out by the More in Common think-tank, 62% of people in Wales answered ‘Don’t Know” when asked who would make a better First Minister. Vaughan Gething wins the support of 20% while Jeremy Miles is backed by 17%.
In the most recent Barn Cymru YouGov poll for ITV Wales and Cardiff University which was carried out in December, before the final shortlist of two was confirmed, Vaughan Gething was on 11%, Jeremy Miles was on 3% while Don’t Know scored 72%.
Both polls are surveys of the wider public in Wales, whereas the decision to choose between the two men will be made by members of the Welsh Labour Party and affiliated organisations.
That voting began on 16 February. A winner will be announced on 16 March with a vote to choose a new First Minister being held in the Senedd a few days later on 20 March.
The polling also shows that if a UK General Election were to be held now, Labour has a 22-point lead over the Conservatives here in Wales.
It also shows that most people (68%) think that the Labour Welsh Government has done a poor job when it comes to the NHS and the Economy.
More in Common, which was set up following the murder of Jo Cox MP, surveyed 1,000 people in Wales between 24 January and 6 February in a sample representative nationally of people in Wales- nationally representative of people in Wales.
Asked what they want from the next First Minister, people say they prefer a strong vision for the future over a strong record in government.
73% backed a “strong vision for the future’ compared to 16% who said a ‘strong record in government’ was their priority.
As for the record of the outgoing leader, according to the poll people here in Wales are split over Mark Drakeford. 45% think he has been a 'very good’ or ‘quite good’ First Minister while 43% say he has been ‘quite bad’ or ‘very bad.’
There’s clearer criticism when it comes to policy areas:
The Associate Director of More in Common, Conleth Burns, said: ”As Labour members cast their votes in the FM leadership election, our polling shows Vaughan Gething and Jeremy Miles neck and neck in the polling.
“However, the in-tray facing the FM is stark. Three in five Welsh people think that the Welsh government has done a bad job on the economy and the NHS, and what they want to see from the next First Minister is a strong vision for the future rather than the next First Minister running on their record in government .”
In the UK (Westminster) General Election voting intention, the poll found that Labour has a 22-point lead over the Conservatives in Wales. Labour is on 45 points, the Conservatives on 23 points, Plaid Cymru on 10 points, Reform UK on 9 points, Green Party on 5 points.
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