I went looking for the few remaining Tory voters. They

Even lifelong Conservative voters seem tired of the Tories. Signs are pointing to a total party collapse

Who are the people who will still vote Tory? True, there are not many left, but a solid core of 20% of the population will opt for more of the same, the lowest percentage in polling history, says Prof John Curtice. That many still seem willing to re-elect those who did such national damage is, to put it politely, perplexing.

Do they really back the exceptionally mean-spirited and squalid bribery of their party’s prospectus? Well, the great majority have better things to do than read manifestos. But go out and talk to ordinary Tory voters and you find their state of mind out of tune with their party’s hierarchy. That’s why most traditional Tories have fled, ignored by the manifesto writers who press on with deeper cuts to collapsing public services, adding to the 4.3 million children going hungry.

Polly Toynbee is a Guardian columnist

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