Poll: UK voters wanted Starmer gone, but not an immediate Burnham coronation – POLITICO

Andy Burnham is the clear front-runner to become the country’s next leader after Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced his resignation Monday — a remarkable fall from power just two years after he rode a wave of voter demand for change to a decisive victory. But The POLITICO Poll finds that many U.K. adults didn’t want Burnham to be anointed leader, even though many were on board with him ultimately becoming prime minister.

Just 1 in 5 U.K. adults said Burnham should be immediately made Labour leader — and thus prime minister — if he won last week’s Makerfield by-election for a seat in Parliament, which he did.

Instead, a 54 percent majority of adults said there should be a leadership contest, even if it means going many months without knowing who will serve as prime minister. That view is fairly consistent across party lines, with 57 percent of Labour voters supporting the idea of a leadership contest instead of Burnham being elevated immediately.