So how does Phil Goff respond to Labour's latest poll setback? He blames the public! Kate Chapman from Stuff reports:
Labour Leader Phil Goff is refusing to accept his party's poor popularity saying its bad polling is because people aren't focused on the issues.
There are two ways of looking at Goff's statement. If "people aren't focused on the issues" (and later in the story, the RWC gets the blame as well), why did Labour release its game-changing CGT policy back on July 14th, four months before the election, and at a RWC venue to boot? Surely, if the people weren't going to focus on the issues until later in the campaign, Labour should have kept its powder dry.
But secondly, Phil Goff may just have misjudged the public's reaction. Give the people credit for being able to make their own minds up Mr Goff. And the public seems to have decided that by and large, the Labour Party they voted out of office three years ago has still not taken onboard the message that the electorate sent them.
Phil Goff would get far more respect if he was to say "Look; we accept that we are not connecting with people" and if he and his Labour Party colleagues actually took responsibility for the current bad polling. To continue to make excuses just convinces many of those who abandoned Labour in 2008 that they were right to do so.
The August Herald DigiPoll has been released, and in keeping with other polls released this month, it's not good news for the Labour Party; the Herald reports:
Three months before the election, the Labour Party's support has dropped again in the Herald-DigiPoll survey to its lowest this term.
Labour's support dropped among decided voters by almost two points to 31.5 per cent - its second lowest since 1999.
This follows a three-point drop the month before. Its lowest was in July 2008 when it polled at 30.8 per cent.
National remained steady on 52 per cent in the poll of 750 eligible voters - enough to secure it 65 seats in Parliament and govern without requiring support from other parties.
Labour would have 39 seats.
The Green Party and NZ First were the main beneficiaries of Labour's fall. The Greens went up by 1.5 points to 9.8 per cent - their highest in the poll since mid 2002, and enough to add three more MPs to the nine they have.
NZ First went from 0.9 to 2.4 per cent after its annual conference.
This is simply news that Labour neither needed or wanted. The Herald DigiPoll had been Labour's friend among the polls, with the party scoring higher there than any of the other polls. But even the DigiPoll now is getting perilously close to the 30% mark.
And the Herald story shuts the door on another of Labour's excuses. At the weekend on the Nation someone from Labour (and we can't recall whether it was Shane Jones or the panel of Stuart Nash, Carol Beaumont and Carmel Sepuloni) said that things would change once undecided voters made their minds up. Not so, according the the Herald DigiPoll; read on:
With three months to go before polling day, undecided voters had dropped from 11 per cent to 9 per cent this month - well below the same point before the 2008 election, when 17 per cent were still undecided.
The poll of 750 eligible voters was between August 19 and 26.
Oh dear; there are only half the number of undecided voters that there were at this time in the 2008 election cycle. Even if every single one of those gave their party vote to Labour, National would still be able to govern on its own.
Labour's caucus meets today, for the first time since the One News, 3News and Herald DigiPolls. If only the walls of the Labour caucus room had ears!
21 comments:
You are obsessed by political polls Inv2. and each of your posts gloats over Labour's poor showing - oh dear, oh dear, you intone. Given that you are as much a sports commentator as a political one, I'm wondering if you treat sports teams in the same derisive way, lauding your own, decrying every aspect of the opposition.
It's very unsporting of you.
Ahh but I believe that those four walls do have ears and I think it will be a matter of hours, if that, before a leak appears.
I would rather Labour gets their shit sorted out to stop their former supporters going to the nutty Greens, Booby is a classic example of one of them, or Winny
Au contraire Robert; this poll is newsworthy. It's been referred to on radio news this morning, and was on the 6.30am TV news as well; the last bulletin I saw before coming to work.
As for the sporting analogy, that's another fail for you; what part of
It was an enigmatic performance from the All Blacks. They were stunned by the ferocity with which the Australians attacked them in the early stages, and never really recovered in the first half. If anything, the half-time score flattered the All Blacks. The early loss of Kieran Read with a sprained ankle didn't help, whilst Adam Thompson aggravated an elbow injury, and was ineffective. The team struggled to get the ball, turned it over far too easily, and missed too many tackles.
(my most recent critique of a sporting performance) lauds my own team and decries the opposition?
Anyway Robert; you should be rejoicing; it now only needs an 11% swing from Labour to the Green Party, and you will be the Opposition! Wouldn't THAT be a feather in your green cap?
Better than being obsessed with talking like a crapweasle and lossing voters.
@Robert - you can bet that if the Man U v Arsenal result had been reversed then there would have been a post dripping with schadenfreude.
I didn't dare risk my posting privileges by having a chuckle at that 8-2, biggest defeat since 18whatever scoreline. Oops!
Gloat all you want James; I already know it's going the be a LOOONG season this year to be an Arsenal fan, but once a Gooner, always a Gooner. If only Labour's fan base was as dedicated!
Gloat? Moi? Don't talk to a Tranmere Rovers fan about "looong seasons"...they all are.
A Fulham-supporting Bookface mate of mine has already noted a lower incidence of Arsenal and Spurs (that 5-1 results was probably the saving grace eh?) shirts around this week.
I would say though, getting back to semi-serious. The link between Labour and Man Utd and the level of gloating that they inspire, is directly proportional to their (real or perceived) arrogance.
I am glad I support a "rubbish" team in the Championship. A mates description not mine!
The humilitation of being a supporter of the Arse or Spurs for that matter. I wonder if Scott Parker will be wondering if his transfer from West Ham to Spurs is such a good idea!
Manchester clubs 13 - London clubs 3!
And the Poll was front page of the Herald so is newsworthy.
If only Labour's fan base was as dedicated!
I think you'll find they are I2, as of course are the red/green nutters.
What else except blind, thoughtless fanatacism would see anyone support, let alone vote for, these showers?
"What else except blind, thoughtless fanatacism would see anyone support, let alone..."
Or follow a religion?
I wonder if Booby will have another go at getting on the Green list if they do go beyond say 15%.
Don't want to go on about the EIGHT - 2 result but I see the Arse are offering free away tickets. Seem expensive to me.
Gee, look at this Robert; it's the second story on 3News' website, which I was alerted to via Twitter:
http://www.3news.co.nz/Polls-still-grim-reading-for-Labour/tabid/419/articleID/223968/Default.aspx
See; it's not just me who's talking about this latest poll misery.
Ah Inv2 - you misunderstand.
I know you don't demolish opposition sport teams day in day out. That would be unsporting but you do just that with your political commentary, making that unsporting, as I said originally.
Scabber - the depth of your comments here rival that of a bead of sweat on a sumo wrestlers rump (to use a sporting analogy), or the film of moisture on Venus William's bicep (sporting analogy that might excite you).
Be nice to Jabba Robert; he's in the middle of bowel prep for a colonsoscopy, so the world's dropped out of his bottom!
The intellectual giant, the water melon (organic naturally), the Shining Wit (or 'whit' if preferred) comes in with inane name calling when he is pwned.
If that poll result from a poll that is, as Iv2 points out, more favorable to Labour for any number of reasons, is not worth a post on a political blog then the towering intellect that you continually seem to need to advance may not be in the stratosphere as you imagine.
Your opening comment is puerile garbage, Whit.
Back on topic the biggest concern for those who care about our democracy functioning is the lack of a credible opposition and if the Greens aspire to leading that role, god forbid after the very shallow, craven grasp for votes with the very amateur analysis of the "Water Tax. If that impost on a specific group of farmers is an example of their ability to understand what constitutes fair, gross profit, net profit , affordable imposts,and so many other economic facts that are the basis of successful business activity I say again god help the Nation.
Ouch!
Not fun.
Walks from room with a clenched sort of waddle!
What a pity you can't waddle silently.
Anonymous, you point is?
Name calling Gravy? How I laughed when you played that card! Hee haw, hee haw!
The remainder of your comment is pap.
Hey jabba, my sympathies and I wish you luck.
Inv2 - sporting or unsporting, your relentless gloating over Labour's poll results. (Don't rely on Gravy's opinion on the issue - he's altogether failed to grasp it.)
?
Hee haw, hee haw! brayed the ass.
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