 He thus became Leader of the Opposition, with former Nationalist leader John Latham as his deputy.The UAP realised that Lyons, an affable family man with the common touch, was a far more electorally appealing figure than the aloof Latham.Additionally, his Labor background and his Catholicism would allow him to win traditional Labor constituencies (working-class voters and Irish Catholics) over to what was essentially an upper- and middle-class conservative party.