In the third round of voting for the new Tory party leader and prime minister, MP Tom Tugendhat has dropped out. The now four-candidate field is still led by former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, who increased his last result by 14 votes to 115. Secretary of State at the Department of Commerce Penny Mordaunt lost a vote but remains in second place at 82. Secretary of State Liz Truss was supported by 71 MPs, up seven from Thursday. The last to cross the finish line – with 58 votes – was State Secretary in the Ministry of Housing, Kemi Badenoch. She gained nine votes.
If there are no more major movements, Badenoch threatens to be eliminated in the next ballot this Tuesday.
While MEPs in the group cast their ballots for a successor to incumbent Prime Minister Boris Johnson, a vote of no confidence was being prepared against him in the plenary hall. It was originally requested by the Labor Party. After some political maneuvering, however, it was introduced by the government itself. In the debate before the vote, Johnson defended his record in an impassioned speech and claimed that his government had “delivered on every single campaign promise”. Labor leader Keir Starmer, on the other hand, spoke of Johnson’s “never-ending delusions” and described it as “a relief for the country” that the Tories had “sacked” Johnson.
Sunak and Truss are tackled hard
Johnson received some strong encouragement from within his own ranks. Rep. Bill Wiggins regretted that the country had “lost a political communicator and leader of historic proportions”. A clear government victory was expected.
After heated arguments and personal attacks in two television debates, Sunak and Truss canceled their participation in a third TV round on Monday. The mutual “flagellation” of candidates does not serve the party, the parliamentary group said. The broadcaster Sky News then deleted the debate from the program. So far, Sunak had presented himself confidently in the debates. However, as a “front-runner” he was the focus of the attacks. He had to justify his tax policy and the wealth of his father-in-law, an Indian company founder. Truss, on the other hand, clearly had trouble with the format of self-portrayal in the media. “I may not be the smoothest performer on this stage,” she admitted – while also lashing out at the often overly nimble Sunak. Mordaunt disappointed many observers. Her financial plans have remained vague and she is struggling with her record as a former gender equality officer.
Kemi Badenoch rose to become the favorite candidate of many conservative journalists, but also of the party base. Rejecting calls from the party’s right wing for her to step down and bring her supporters to Truss, she said she was in a race to win.