Reform UK takes a hit over Rupert Lowe but a much 'bigger threat' is waiting in the wings for Nigel Farage (0.019464720194647202)

<iframe frameborder="0" height="100%" scrolling="no" src="https://www.gbnews.com/res/scraper/embed/?video_url=https%3A%2F%2Fmm-v2.simplestream.com%2Fiframe%2Fplayer.php%3Fkey%3D3Li3Nt2Qs8Ct3Xq9Fi5Uy0Mb2Bj0Qs%26player%3DGB003%26uvid%3D52813331%26type%3Dvod%26viously_id%3DagDWeNfCS1Q" width="100%"></iframe><br/><p class="">The unfolding psychodrama inside Reform UK has reversed the party's seemingly unstoppable rise in the polls, but Donald Trump poses a "bigger threat" to Nigel Farage, Britain's top elections guru tells GB News. </p><p>John Curtice's grim warning follows Lowe's shock suspension from the party last Friday over allegations of bullying and making verbal threats of violence to the chairman, which the 63-year-old strenuously denies. </p><p>Lowe has been locked in a bitter war of words with Farage ever since, even threatening to take libel action against Reform.</p><h3></h3><br/><p>The infighting is putting off voters. After polling ahead of the two main parties since January, a YouGov poll earlier this week found Reform’s support has slipped from 25 per cent to 23 per cent, putting them in second place behind Labour, while the Tories gained a one-point boost to put Kemi Badenoch’s party in third place on 22 per cent.</p><p>Perhaps more revealingly, a third of Reform UK voters (33 per cent) believe that the party would be doing better under a different leader to Farage, including a fifth (21 per cent) who think Reform would be doing “a lot” better with an alternative leader, a separate YouGov poll found. </p><h3></h3><br/><img alt="Nigel Farage (left), Rupert Lowe (right)" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="f74918cbd1eb7f7272996de8b1561ace" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="b1709" loading="lazy" src="https://www.gbnews.com/media-library/nigel-farage-left-rupert-lowe-right.png?id=57326698&width=980"/><h3></h3><br/><p>What does Curtice make of all this? </p><p>Firstly, the polling guru points out that Reform's challenges predate this latest row. </p><p><span>"I suspect that we've probably reached </span><span>some kind of peak with Reform," Curtice told GB News, adding: They [Reform] have been polling at about 25 per cent, roughly neck-and-neck with Labour but not really progressing much further." </span></p><p><span><span>Given Farage is </span><span>appealing primarily to Brexiteers, who make up only 40 per cent of the electorate, he's </span><span>already "cut out a large portion of that margin". </span></span></p><p><span><span>Although the Rupert Lowe affair has compounded Reform's challenges, the strongest headwind is coming from across the Atlantic, Curtice claims.</span></span></p><h3></h3><br/><div class="embed-dontmiss"></div><p><span>"Arguably the bigger threat that Reform might be facing</span> <span>is the association with Trump, and the very negative evaluations of Trump," he told GB News.</span></p><p><span>Indeed, public opinion is souring on Farage's friend overseas as he takes Nato allies to task, threatens to abandon America's commitment to Ukraine and expands his trade war. </span></p><p><span>The threat this poses to Reform was evident in the polls that followed Volodymyr Zelensky's chaotic White House briefing last month, which resulted in his disorderly exit after Trump and his Vice President JD Vance accused him of being ungrateful and risking World War Three over his handling of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.</span></p><p><span>While Starmer swung into action, hosting a Nato summit two days later and vowing to defend Ukraine at all costs, Farage took a more equivocal stance on the Oval Office encounter, appearing to side with Trump. </span></p><p><span>He criticised Zelensky for his demeanor during the exchange, claiming that the Ukrainian president "played it very badly" and accused him of "bowling in and showing no respect" for Trump.</span></p><h3></h3><br/><div class="embed-mostread"></div><strong>LATEST MEMBERSHIP DEVELOPMENTS<br/></strong><ul><li><a href="https://www.gbnews.com/politics/reform-uk-nigel-farage-rupert-lowe" target="_blank"><strong>'Noses will be put out of joint': Farage's ex-advisor delivers frank verdict on Rupert Lowe row as Reform regroups</strong></a></li><li><a href="https://www.gbnews.com/politics/labour-party-keir-starmer-ukraine-security" target="_blank"><strong>EXPOSED: Labour's three dangerous blind spots turning UK into a 'second-tier' country - bombshell report</strong></a></li><li><a href="https://www.gbnews.com/opinion/reform-uk-rupert-lowe-nigel-farage-zia-yusuf" target="_blank"><strong>Zia Yusuf is a massive credit to Reform UK and the attacks on him say more about his critics - Gary Mond</strong></a></li></ul><h3></h3><br><img alt="Trump" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="2f0969957583803163644434cabdd25c" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="b456b" loading="lazy" src="https://www.gbnews.com/media-library/trump.jpg?id=56137553&width=980"/><h3></h3><br/><p>Britons were less ambivalent about the encounter, mostly endorsing Starmer's pro-defence posture and absolute support for Ukraine.</p><p>As Curtice points out, this was reflected in the polls. The number of Britons with a favourable view of the PM subsequently increased from 26 per cent in mid-February to 31 per cent in one YouGov poll. </p><p>Meanwhile, the proportion with an unfavourable view of the Labour leader fell from 66 per cent to 59 per cent. This pushed his net favourability score down to -28, its lowest level since September last year.</p><p>Despite clarifying his position and reaffirming his party's support for Ukraine, Farage’s numbers worsened following the White House briefing, with a quarter of Britons (26 per cent) having a positive view of him, down from 30 per cent in mid-February. This is against two-thirds of the public (65 per cent) seeing Farage in a negative light, up from 60 per cent.</p><p>Farage’s latest net favourability score of -39 was 11 points lower than Starmer’s, a noticeable contrast from February’s ratings, which gave Farage a net advantage over Starmer of 10 points.</p><p><span></span>To add to Nigel Farage's woes, Trump is increasingly perceived as an unreliable partner, with the number of Britons who still see the US as either a ‘friend and ally’ or ‘friendly rival’ to Britain and other European countries falling from 67 per cent to 53 per cent in a recent YouGov Poll. </p><p>Adding further weight to Curtice's assessment, one insider tells GB News that Reform is keeping a close eye on developments across the Atlantic as the party has largely tied its fate to that of Trump's by spearheading a similar project.</p><p>They told us: "I think one of the things that's going to make life a lot easier for us is that because of what's happened in America, we can say by the next election that if Trump gets away with a third of what he's proposing, we will be able to point to America and say to voters: 'look, it works'."</p></br>