John Curtice

Sir John Kevin Curtice FRSA FRSE FBA FAcSS (born 10 December 1953) is a British political scientist who is professor of politics at the University of Strathclyde and senior research fellow at the National Centre for Social Research. He is particularly interested in psephology (electoral behaviour) and researching political and social attitudes.

Quotes

• [T]o some degree I'm a jester, a licensed fool; under the guise of impartiality or academic dottiness, you're given a licence to say what other people won't say. I take the view that intellectuals tend not to be very good at politics. You need to be articulate, you need to be good at communication, you need to be able to construct a narrative and set out a vision; but you also need not to have self-doubt – and that's a crucial feature of academic life.
  • From an interview, as cited in "Sir John Curtice: In some ways, Reform is as big a problem as Labour for Sunak now", The Telegraph (18 February 2024).

• But if the electorate said a firm "No" to the Conservatives on Thursday, the enthusiasm for Labour was muted. The party won just 35 per cent of the vote, less than Jeremy Corbyn in 2017 and less than Tony Blair achieved in his three election victories. Indeed, never before has a party been able to form a majority government on so low a share of the vote.
  In combination with the Conservatives' record low share, this meant that the share of the vote won by Labour and the Conservatives combined was the lowest since Labour first became the Conservatives' principal rivals in 1922.
  • "Labour's strength in Commons is heavily exaggerated", The Times (5 July 2024).
  • Following the 2024 general election on 4 July.