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The battle is intensifying between the candidates who want to be the Conservative Party’s new leader – and thus the British Prime Minister – ahead of Thursday’s vote. Six candidates remain.
The Conservative MPs will vote at 12.30 Swedish time and the result is expected at 16. The candidates who do not get 30 votes will leave the party leadership battle. If everyone passes the block, it will go out with the least number of votes.
Of the candidates remaining after Wednesday’s vote, former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak received the most votes, followed by Deputy Commerce Secretary Penny Mordaunt. In last place ended up Suella Braverman, who now risks going out.
Should be ready in September
A third vote will take place on Friday and a fourth on Monday, if required.
When there are four candidates left, they will be asked to take part in a final vote. By Thursday 21 July, there will only be two candidates left.
Who will finally be elected party leader will be decided during the summer by postal vote of the more than 160,000 Tory members. The result will be announced on 5 September.
The littering between the various candidates’ political camps is in full swing. Favorite tipper Penny Mordaunt is criticized, among other things, for not being considered experienced enough.
Receives criticism for Brexit negotiations
“Unfortunately, I did not think she had the detailed knowledge required in the negotiations,” says her former boss and Brexit negotiator Lord Frost in an interview with Talk TV.
When candidate Tom Tugendhat was asked what was most difficult: being a soldier or a Member of Parliament, he replied:
– When you’re in the army, you at least know who your enemy is.
Facts
What six candidates remain?
Rishi Sunak, former Minister of Finance. It was Sunak who, together with the former Minister of Health Sajid Javid, set in motion the wave of defections from Johnson’s government that later led to his downfall. Got 88 votes in Wednesday’s vote.
Penny Mordaunt, Deputy Secretary of Commerce. Mordaunt was the country’s first female defense minister in 2019. Got 67 votes in Wednesday’s vote.
Liz Truss, Secretary of State. Truss is popular with conservative voters in the country. Got 50 votes in Wednesday’s vote.
Kemi Badenoch, former Deputy Minister for Gender Equality. Badenoch was one of those who resigned from Johnson’s government office last week when she launched her own candidacy. Got 40 votes in Wednesday’s vote.
Tom Tugendhat, Member of Parliament and Chairman of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee. Got 37 votes in Wednesday’s vote.
Suella Braverman, Chancellor of Justice for England and Wales. Demanded Boris Johnson’s resignation last week. Got 32 votes in Wednesday’s vote.
Read moreFacts
Boris Johnson’s resignation
The news that Boris Johnson is resigning as party leader and prime minister came last week after some fifty ministers and high-ranking politicians resigned in protest of his leadership.
Johnson has in a short time been involved in several scandals, of which the latest, the so-called “Pincher scandal”, was the drop that made the cup overflow. The scandal, in turn, follows what is known in the British press as the “party gate”, and a subsequent vote of no confidence in the Tories, which Johnson survived but where 41 percent of the party’s MPs did not support him.
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