An Opinium survey reports that Reform UK holds a polling lead over Labour ahead of the Makerfield by-election. The poll shows Nigel Farage’s party at 29% support, which is up two percentage points compared with the previous month and marks its highest share in about three months, since early March. The survey results indicate Reform is ahead of Labour by nine points. The coverage also references voter preferences for a prospective prime minister, noting that voters would prefer Tony Blair over Keir Starmer or Andy Burnham. Taken together, the reporting frames the by-election as a key test of changing political support, with Reform’s recent movement in polling highlighted alongside the stated prime-minister preference figures. The information comes from the same Opinium survey figures as reported by the outlet.