Reform UK’s support is more than a ‘protest’ vote, research suggests

Christopher McKeon, Press Association Political Correspondent

The latest British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey found Reform voters were most distinguished by their cultural attitudes, suggesting support for the party was more than a “protest” vote.

Pollster and BSA co-author Sir John Curtice said Reform supporters were “deeply ideological” and had “a level of emotional attachment that neither Labour nor the Conservatives have managed to inspire in voters for decades”.

The BSA survey did find Reform supporters were more dissatisfied with the state of the country and their personal circumstances than other voters.

Some 60% of Reform voters were “very dissatisfied” with the NHS, compared to 51% of the general public, while 27% said they were “struggling” on their current household income – five points more than the figure for the general public.

But they stood out far more on cultural issues, with 75% saying migrants undermined Britain’s culture. Just 35% of the general public said the same.

Some 88% said equal opportunities for transgender people had gone too far and 78% said benefits for the unemployed were too high.

The figures for the general public were 48% and 60% respectively.

Sir John said the roots of the party’s support lay in the vote to leave the EU in 2016, describing this as “motivated by cultural questions of national identity, immigration, and pride in British history”.

The survey found 49% of people who would vote to stay out of the EU backed Reform, while the party’s support reflected the coalition that voted Leave – being older, male and less likely to have gone to university.

Sir John said: “Reform has effectively absorbed the coalition of voters that voted in 2019 for Boris Johnson to ‘get Brexit done’.

“The party’s future prospects do not simply rest on whether the economy and the health service are turned around and whether by the time of the next election voters become more satisfied with how they are being governed.

“They also rest heavily on whether it can continue to persuade Britain’s more socially conservative voters that it best represents their views.”

The BSA survey, carried out annually since 1983 by the National Centre for Social Research, surveyed 4,656 people across the UK. The most recent version took place between August and October 2025.