The Tory leadership contest has been whittled down to a trio after former security minister Tom Tugendhat was knocked out of the race, which saw James Cleverly leap from third place into first.
In the third round of voting by Tory MPs, the contenders received the following votes:
- James Cleverly, 39
- Robert Jenrick, 31
- Kemi Badenoch, 30
- Tom Tugendaht, 20
MPs will vote again tomorrow to select the final two candidates, who Tory members will then vote on. The new leader will be announced on Saturday 2 November.
In this round, Cleverly led the way with a whopping eighteen more votes compared to the last time, with Badenoch gaining two. Meanwhile, Jenrick lost two votes, and Tugendhat lost one vote.
Tugendhat thanked those who backed him in a post on X, adding: “Your energy, your ideas and your support have shown a vision of what our party could become.
“Our campaign has ended but our commitment to our country continues.”
All four contenders – Kemi Badenoch, James Cleverly, Robert Jenrick, and Tom Tugendhat – presented their cases to party members at the Conservative conference in Birmingham.
Cleverly, who had a slow start in the race, gained traction following a well-received speech at the conference, whereas Badenoch’s campaign was hindered by her divisive comments, such as saying maternity pay was “excessive” and the minimum wage was “harming businesses”.
Jenrick was broadly viewed as a leading candidate until now, while Tugendhat, despite receiving a positive response from party members in Birmingham, continued to be seen as the underdog and is therefore out of the race.
In his second attempt at becoming Tory leader after his 2022 bid, he positioned himself as a reliable leader who could restore the Tory party’s credibility following its historic defeat in the general election by uniting the party and regaining public trust.
Former home secretary Priti Patel went out in the first round of voting by Tory MPs in September, followed by former work and pensions secretary Mel Stride the week after.
