Four candidates now remain in the race for the UK PM position: former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, International Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and former Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch.
Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat was knocked out of the leadership race on Monday to become the next leader of the Conservative Party and the country.
Following the announcement, Tugendhat tweeted: “Although it wasn’t to be today, I am immensely proud of the positive vision we put forward for our country. Thank you to all those who supported me and believed in #ACleanStart. This is only the beginning!”
He added, implicitly referring to the trust broken by current Prime Minister Boris Johnson: “One thing is clear – if we cannot rebuild trust, our party is doomed. Not just for now, but for a generation or more. To win an election we need the country behind us. Our values, our conservative values, can only be achieved in government.”
Two more rounds of voting will take place tomorrow and on Wednesday until just two candidates remain. They will then campaign across the country before party members vote on the winner, to be announced on Sept 5.
Johnson, rocked by a series of scandals, previously announced that he would resign, but would stay in post until a successor was elected. He has declined to back any candidate for fear of hurting their chances.