Ipsos, NatCen and a 2018 YouGov benchmark show a monarchy that is still the majority choice but weaker among the young
Support for the Monarchy Falls to 55 Percent in Ipsos, a 33-Year Low, With Young Britons Split
Ipsos, NatCen and a 2018 YouGov benchmark show a monarchy that is still the majority choice but weaker among the young
By Isla Campbell, royal correspondent, Central London
The Latest Poll
Ipsos published a poll on 19 June 2026, with fieldwork on 5 to 11 March, showing that 55 percent of British adults would favour a monarchy and 27 percent a republic, with 18 percent undecided, according to Ipsos. The sample was 1,062 adults aged 18 and over from the Ipsos UK KnowledgePanel. This is the lowest monarchy support Ipsos has recorded since its series began in 1993; the previous low was 60 percent in November 2021. Gideon Skinner, Senior Director of UK Political Research at Ipsos, described support for the institution as the lowest we have measured for 33 years.
The age breakdown is the part that drew attention. Among 18 to 34-year-olds, 33 percent favoured a monarchy, 45 percent a republic and 22 percent did not know. Among 35 to 54-year-olds the figures were 51, 28 and 21 percent. Among those aged 55 and over, 74 percent favoured a monarchy, 14 percent a republic and 12 percent did not know.
A Second Source
A longer series comes from NatCen’s British Social Attitudes survey, reported by the Press Association in September 2025. The report says the survey, with 4,120 interviews between 16 September and 27 October 2024, found the share saying it is important to keep the monarchy fell from 86 percent in 1983 to 51 percent in 2024. About 31 percent said the monarchy was not important, up from about 10 percent in 1983, and 15 percent supported abolition, up from 3 percent.
In a new question, 58 percent favoured retaining the monarchy and 38 percent preferred an elected head of state. By party, Conservative supporters (82 percent) and Reform UK supporters (77 percent) were strongest for the monarchy, while Labour supporters were split almost evenly, 49 percent to 48 percent. Scottish respondents (59 percent) and Welsh respondents (64 percent) favoured an elected head of state, and support was highest among those identifying as English (68 percent) or British (62 percent). Alex Scholes, NatCen research director, said support is now at its lowest since records began, and that a majority still prefer to keep the monarchy when asked to choose directly.
The Benchmark
For comparison, a YouGov survey published on 17 May 2018, before the royal wedding, found that 69 percent of Britons were monarchists and 21 percent opposed, with majorities in every age group: 57 percent of 18 to 24-year-olds and 77 percent of those aged 55 or older. The sample was not stated in the article. It is eight years old, from a different pollster with different wording, so the comparison is a rough one.
The direction is not in doubt. Whether measured by Ipsos, NatCen or YouGov, the decline is real, and the youngest group is the least supportive.
How Questions Change Answers
A monarchy poll is sensitive to how it is worded. Ipsos asks whether people would favour a monarchy or a republic. NatCen asks how important it is to keep the monarchy, and separately whether Britain should have a monarchy or an elected head of state. The first gives 55 percent for the monarchy, the second 58 percent, and the third 51 percent calling it important. They measure related but distinct things.
That is why a careful report quotes the wording. A headline of record low is true of each series, and a headline of a majority still supports is also true of each.
What Might Explain It
The polls do not tell us why. Commentators offer generational change, scandals, the death of Queen Elizabeth II and doubts about the cost. I do not have data in these sources to weigh the theories and will not pick one. Ipsos and NatCen publish more detailed tables, which are the place to look.
The NatCen blog, quoted in the report, says support is strongest among older, right-leaning individuals and that a preference for an elected head of state is linked to younger and more left-leaning respondents. That is a description of who holds which view, not of why.
What It Means for the Palace
A monarchy with 55 percent support is not in immediate danger. It is, however, in a position where the next generation of voters is not behind it. The question for the Household is how to engage them without the means that older audiences value.
The Autumn Tour and the work of the Prince and Princess of Wales are part of that effort, and I discuss the tour in the next piece. The polls will show whether it works.
A Word on Method
Polls are snapshots with margins of error. A sample of 1,062 gives a margin of several percentage points on any figure, and the age subgroups are smaller still, so the 33 percent for 18 to 34-year-olds could be a few points either way. I mention this not to dismiss the result but to keep it in proportion.
Reading the Funny Page Alongside the Data
Readers meet comedy and reporting in the same feed, so it helps to know the difference. On one overseas property story, see Manila News, the London Prat (see https://prat.uk/cebu-estate-agents-demand-character-references/) and Bohiney: each starts from a recognisable market fact and signals its tone through exaggeration. More material sits at prat.uk and bohiney.com.
Note: Philippine authorities are examining unproven allegations about Thomas Markle Sr., who lived in Cebu until earlier this year, as GMA News and the Guardian have reported. No charges have been filed. Child protection is a serious matter; the jokes here are about a property market and the paperwork.
For the lighter side of the news, there is always NewsBiscuit.
SOURCE: https://bohiney.com/cebu-realtor-cant-sell-beachfront-listings/