Karl Pike

How to understand the post-Gorton and Denton national poll that puts the Greens ahead of Labour It’s not the byelection win that matters but the scale of the swing to Zack Polanski’s party.

My thoughts on the poll showing the Greens have overtaken Labour following the Gorton and Denton by-election, whether this could be a "bandwagon effect", and what that means, for The Conversation: theconversation.com/how-to-under...

Centrism as a structure for political action A distinct centrism which goes ‘beyond’ left and right remains elusive, argues Karl Pike. Centrists act as a managers of an ideological context shaped by existing ideologies of left and right, moderat...

A blog on my centrism paper for @ecprtheloop.bsky.social
theloop.ecpr.eu/centrism-as-...

What Is Centrism? - Karl Pike, 2026 Centrism, an ambiguous political term, requires greater analytical scrutiny. After summarising conceptualisations of centrism – and of a centre in politics – th...

Focusing on centrism as a purported set of ideas – a centre beyond left and right – @karlpike.bsky.social offers a new theory of centrism as a structure for political action: a politics which oscillates between left and right. Read OPEN ACCESS: buff.ly/rdRQJBU

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social #polisky

How to deal with defecting MPs Voters should be able to force parliamentarians who change parties to face the electorate

Good discussion piece from @philipjcowley.bsky.social on the issue of by-elections after defections.
www.ft.com/content/5d7d...

Focusing on centrism as a purported set of ideas – a centre beyond left and right – @karlpike.bsky.social offers a new theory of centrism as a structure for political action: a politics which oscillates between left and right. Read OPEN ACCESS: buff.ly/rdRQJBU

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social #polisky

Instead, I suggest it is really a structure for political action. There are very few political concepts within centrism, but it is an observable political phenomenon within liberal democracies: a politics which oscillates between left and right.

What I try to do in this article is think through the more ideational meaning of centrism, which some consider to be a politics that goes ‘beyond’ left and right. I offer a theory of centrism that disputes this.

Centrism can mean a few things, some of which I think are uncontentious – e.g. a basic relative descriptor inside political parties, when someone is a bit less left, or a bit less right, they are ‘more centrist’.

What Is Centrism? - Karl Pike, 2026 Centrism, an ambiguous political term, requires greater analytical scrutiny. After summarising conceptualisations of centrism – and of a centre in politics – th...

I have a new article just published in Political Studies: What is Centrism? Open access here: doi.org/10.1177/0032...

He's right - terrific stuff. 'You cannot “live within the lie” of mutual benefit through integration when integration becomes the source of your subordination.'

St John’s founders are stepping back. What comes next for the trailblazing nose-to-tail restaurant? Fergus Henderson and Trevor Gulliver are retiring from day-to-day operations after 31 years

“Let a carrot be a carrot.” www.ft.com/content/cbe1...

Hearts and minds | Fabian Society Fabian Society

We are seeing increased illiberalism, and anti-liberalism, in our politics. The Labour party has a responsibility, as a government and as a centre-left political tradition, to counter this illiberalism, which takes different forms.
fabians.org.uk/hearts-and-m...

A pledge from Labour’s most senior politicians, including the Prime Minister - a pledge repeated since taking office - cannot be easily broken. The political consequences could be dire.

The consequences of Labour’s manifesto tax pledge continue to be significant. Real shame there wasn’t enough debate about it, particularly within the party. That it was a key pledge, though, is impossible to ignore: journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...

But those choices were made, and there will surely be consequences to breaking such a clear commitment - including in terms of trust. Debate about tax and spend is much needed - it was in 2024, it is now - but the context is very relevant.

Train hero who saved passengers during attack named The rail worker credited with saving multiple lives is named as Samir Zitouni.

What an absolute hero Samir Zitouni is - doubtless he saved lives that day

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

One observation re. the Dutch election is the enduring strength of the far right (I am not fully subscribing to the 'shift back to the centre' narrative). I should be on ABC Australia News channel at around 11 CET to talk about this and to show my plants (again). www.youtube.com/live/vOTiJkg...

But those choices were made, and there will surely be consequences to breaking such a clear commitment - including in terms of trust. Debate about tax and spend is much needed - it was in 2024, it is now - but the context is very relevant.

The critique of Labour’s pre-election choices is correct, in my view. That the state would need much more money was obvious, and uncertainty over growth meant ruling big things out was bad policy and politics.

Sage Journals: Discover world-class research Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

Think the budget discussion, specifically about tax rates and the big three, could use a little more acknowledgment of the costs of breaking a clear manifesto pledge, as I wrote here:
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Lucy Powell becomes Labour’s deputy leader – what that means for the party and Keir Starmer Powell beat Keir Starmer’s preferred candidate, Bridget Phillipson, in a ballot of members.

Have written for the Conversation on Labour’s deputy leadership contest. Of course, one big thing has not changed: Labour’s difficulty governing, stemming from Starmer’s ideologically confusing leadership.
theconversation.com/lucy-powell-...

Hearts and minds | Fabian Society Fabian Society

We are seeing increased illiberalism, and anti-liberalism, in our politics. The Labour party has a responsibility, as a government and as a centre-left political tradition, to counter this illiberalism, which takes different forms.
fabians.org.uk/hearts-and-m...

“Having a coherent ideology is an underappreciated way of avoiding or managing a busy, unpredictable political environment.”

A renewed confidence in its liberal social democratic roots can help Labour shape the narrative, writes @karlpike.bsky.social ⬇️

fabians.org.uk/hearts-and-m...

Labour sheds support from impatient Britons Research shows party losing voters who want results now, with women more likely to prioritise short-term gains

Great to speak to @greenmirandahere.bsky.social for today's FT Inside Politics about the latest finding from our politics of (im)patience project, w/ @karlpike.bsky.social and @philipjcowley.bsky.social.

www.ft.com/content/e984...

Labour sheds support from impatient Britons Research shows party losing voters who want results now, with women more likely to prioritise short-term gains

Some coverage from the FT today of our ongoing project on the politics of patience, and the Labour govt: www.ft.com/content/e984...

In one crisp para — & the 2 charts he highlights — @chrisgiles.ft.com bursts a huge number of “welfare” myths www.ft.com/content/ee67...

Liberal Democrat membership has halved in 5 years, figures show Analysis of available figures shows the number of party members has fallen by 49% since August 2020.

"In more positive news for the Lib Dems,..research carried out by [the party members project] after the 2024 election showed that the @libdems.org.uk were the most active of all the memberships of the political parties."

Reform likely to raise Kent council tax after cost-cutting drive falters Nigel Farage’s party promised to revive local authority finances by slashing wasteful spending

Reform in local govt, latest:
www.ft.com/content/277c...

My contribution to this issue calls for Labour to counter the growing illiberalism in British politics.

Another fab read from Phil which mentions one of the best books written about Labour: Henry Drucker’s Doctrine and Ethos in the Labour Party.