Sadiq Khan is Labour’s most approved of politician among party members, poll suggests

Sadiq Khan is the most favoured Labour politician among party members, according to an exclusive poll for LabourList.

Polling conducted by Survation found that the Mayor of London is the most approved Labour mayor among the membership, with an approval of +74.

Khan’s approval rating among the party membership is greater than that of Ed Miliband, who topped LabourList’s Cabinet league table with a net approval of +70.

West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin and Metro Mayor for the Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram round out the top three, with approval ratings of +56 and +44 respectively.

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, recently touted as a potential leadership contender, has an approval rating of +39 among Labour members, with his favourability divided along partisan lines.

While Burnham has an approval of +73 among those who supported Lucy Powell in the deputy leadership election, it sits at -18 among members who backed Bridget Phillipson.

Burnham’s support is greatest, unsurprisingly, in North West England at +58, but recorded a negative approval rating in Wales at -3.

In the devolved parliaments of Holyrood and the Senedd, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar recorded an approval rating of +56, while Welsh First Minister and Welsh Labour leader Eluned Morgan’s net favourability among party members sits at +32.

The poll was conducted prior to Anas Sarwar’s call for the Prime Minister to resign earlier this week.

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Emma Burnell, editor of LabourList, said: “My recent discussion with Steve Rotheram underlined the vital importance of place when it comes to policy delivery.

These ratings – which come from member across the country – is not, therefore, a reflection of how these politicians are delivering local but on their national profile.

As such, Sadiq Khan has one of the biggest stages in the country as mayor of the capital and has used that to both deliver for Londoners but also raise national and international issues of importance to Labour members.”

Damian Lyons Lowe, chief executive of Survation, said: “While still incredibly popular with the membership, Andy Burnham’s star has dipped somewhat, a shift that appears to correlate with his statements of leadership ambition in the run-up to the party conference.

“Meanwhile Sadiq Khan, free from the constraints of cabinet collective responsibility, has managed to stay on the right side of the policy positions held by most Labour members. By taking a more pro-EU line, pushing for rent-control powers, and publicly urging a rethink of proposed welfare cuts, London’s Mayor has tacked close to classic Labour values – music to the ears of Labour members distraught by the government’s direction since taking office.”

The poll is the latest in a series of regular polls LabourList is publishing in partnership with leading pollsters Survation, a member of the British Polling Council and a Market Research Society Partner.

Survation surveyed 1,264 readers of LabourList, the leading dedicated newsletter and news and comment website for Labour supporters, who also said they were Labour Party members between February 5 and 6.

Data was weighted to the profile of party members by age group, sex, region and 2025 deputy leadership vote. Targets for weighting were drawn from the British Election Study and the results of the leadership and deputy leadership election.

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