Poll Predicts Reform’s Robert Jenrick Will Lose Seat To Tories

Robert Jenrick is on course to lose his Newark seat to the Conservatives in a great twist of irony, according to a new poll.

Jenrick defected to Reform UK in January, claiming the Tories were “over” and that Nigel Farage’s party was “uniting the right”.

The former Conservative minister and shadow justice secretary was soon appointed to be the Treasury spokesperson for Nigel Farage’s party.

But, in a significant blow to Jenrick, UK Polling Report predicted the ex-Tory frontbencher could be on track to lose his Nottinghamshire constituency to his old party.

It predicted that the Tories would win the seat in the next general election with 36% of the vote while Jenrick and Reform would come in second place, on 27%.

Jenrick was sacked from Kemi Badenoch’s shadow cabinet earlier this year when she discovered his plans to defect.

It came just over a year after he lost the Tory leadership contest to Badenoch.

Hours after Jenrick’s dramatic sacking, Farage announced that he would be joining his party ranks.

He has been regularly mocked by his former colleagues since switching to their right-wing rivals.

Shadow cabinet minister Claire Coutinho last week slammed Jenrick’s time as immigration minister by claiming he “freelanced on policy and claimed credit for ideas that weren’t always his own”.

MPs also openly laughed at Jenrick in the Commons for his defection in May when he tried to call out the “shambles” in the current government.

But many in the Conservatives are still disappointed about his decision to change sides.

Jenrick had a very tense on air reunion with Conservative shadow environment secretary Victoria Atkins in May when they sat next to each other on a BBC panel.

She said: “Rob has not spoken to me since he left the Conservative Party in the way that he did. And I considered us to be very good friends.

“It’s been a great personal loss to me, as well as a professional one. The reason I raise this is because Rob is the economic spokesperson for Reform.

“And I think how one conducts themselves is important. I think that this is a message that will continue until the general election. If people are asking voters for trust, then it has to be genuine.”

Asked for his response to Atkins’ comment about trust, he just said: “I don’t personalise things!”

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