Yes, she was so unpopular she won three elections on the bounce.
Yeah, yeah, popular vote blah blah blah.
Yeah, yeah, popular vote blah blah blah.
Do not fool yourself into thinking she won on her own volition. She won because of external influences, at least some of which were the fault of her opposition.
I don't think what the civil service thinks of you is of particular relevance. She may have been despised by the majority of people in the North of England, but she was (and is) revered across most of the Sourth.