#competition 1. Number of net gains (or losses -ve) for the Dems in the House? +18 2. Number of net gains (or losses -ve) for the Dems in the Senate? +3 3. Number of MSPs won by the SNP at the Holyrood election? 54 4. Number of AMs won by Plaid Cymru at the Senedd election? 16 5. UK Party recording the largest poll lead during 2026 and by what percentage (British Polling Council registered pollsters only)? Reform +14 6. Labour’s Projected National Share of the vote based on the 2026 local elections according to the BBC? 20% 7. Number of Reform MPs on the 31st December 2026? 7 8. The name of the UK Prime Minister on 31st December 2026? Keir Starmer 9. Will Andy Burnham will be an MP on 31st December 2026? No 10. UK borrowing in the financial year to November 2026 (£132.3bn to November 2025)? £129bn 11. UK GDP growth in the 12 months to October 2026 (1.1% to October 2025)? 1.4% 12. Winners of the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup? Spain
That thread - while, er, heartening for @JohnO - is depressing in several ways. First it’s still during Covid - the tail-end, mid 2021, but still in the storm even as it dies. Ugh
Secondly it shows how the PB rightwingers have been slowly eliminated. @felix - banned. @MrEd - banned. Etc
Which is why we are left with the bowl of thin gruel that is Modern PB. Weak sauce centrism. The Endless Dads. Heat pumps and roundabouts
How many regular commenters are clear Reform supporters? I think it’s me and @Luckyguy1983 - @isam has returned to the Tories (as is his right, of course)
We probably have ~100 regular commenters. So we have 2% Reform on PB. Yet out there in the UK Reform are the most popular party on 25-34%, depending on your flavour of pollster
We used to congratulate ourselves that PB was a civilised if rowdy venue that represented Britain, politically. That was never entirely true but it was true enough to be encouraging
The idea is now laughable
Felix is actively posting and liking.
And @MrEd has had several nom de plumes over the years. And I'm fairly sure @Sandpit counts as a Reform supporter.
For what it's worth, we also have barely any Green supporters either.
We are definitely overrepresented as far as "soft left, not sure exactly where", and conservatives.
FWIW, I'm currently a Ref voter, although I might vote tactically for the right sort of Tory if I was in a seat where Ref has no chance. I'm currently in High Peak, which was a Tory-Lab marginal - goodness only knows who'd win it at the moment, but I'm fairly likely to move before the next GE (unless Starmer government implodes very spectacularly in the next year or so) .
Doesn't necessarily mean I agree with everything everyone Ref adjacent says or does mind you - I just think they just seem more likely to fix at least some of the country's problems than all the alternatives (most of whom appear actively keen to make the country's problems worse).
Comments
1. Number of net gains (or losses -ve) for the Dems in the House? +18
2. Number of net gains (or losses -ve) for the Dems in the Senate? +3
3. Number of MSPs won by the SNP at the Holyrood election? 54
4. Number of AMs won by Plaid Cymru at the Senedd election? 16
5. UK Party recording the largest poll lead during 2026 and by what percentage (British Polling Council registered pollsters only)? Reform +14
6. Labour’s Projected National Share of the vote based on the 2026 local elections according to the BBC? 20%
7. Number of Reform MPs on the 31st December 2026? 7
8. The name of the UK Prime Minister on 31st December 2026? Keir Starmer
9. Will Andy Burnham will be an MP on 31st December 2026? No
10. UK borrowing in the financial year to November 2026 (£132.3bn to November 2025)? £129bn
11. UK GDP growth in the 12 months to October 2026 (1.1% to October 2025)? 1.4%
12. Winners of the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup? Spain
However when it comes to preferred PM, SKS v Farage, as much as I dislike SKS I’d prefer him to Farage.
1. +35
2. +4
3. 61
4. 38
5. Reform UK (14%)
6. 19%
7. 11
8. Keir Starmer
9. Yes
10. £105.0bn
11. 1.4%
12. Spain
Thanks for doing this, Ben!
1: +18
2: +3
3: 57
4: 41
5: Reform +15%
6: 17%
7: 9
8: Keir Starmer
9: No
10: £139.0bn
11: 2.1%
12: France