Preaching to the converted? Who attended the Cambourne, Cornwall, Corbyn rally in August 2017?

Abstract

The political party rally was reinvented by Jeremy Corbyn. Despite retaining the rally as an election campaign strategy, Labour calamitously lost the 2019 general election. Did something go wrong with this strategy? This paper analyses the results of a survey of participants in a rally in Camborne, Cornwall in 2017, close to two marginal constituencies. It finds that very few participants were not already dedicated Labour voters. The paper warns of the danger of advertising these rallies only through closed mobilisation channels. For improved efficacy, rallies in marginal constituencies might more widely advertise using open channels to a broader range of people.