Previous minister Patel no longer contends in the Conservative election
After David Cameron stepped down as Prime Minister in 2016, the Conservatives have gone through four different party and government leaders. Currently, they need to find a replacement for Rishi Sunak. A series of votes will help narrow down the potential candidates.
Priti Patel, the previous Home Secretary, has withdrawn from the race to lead the Conservative Party. In the initial round of voting, she received the least support from Tory MPs, with only 14 votes.
As a result, five contenders are left in the running to become the new party leader, aiming to guide the Conservatives back to success after their significant loss to the Labour Party in July. The first round saw Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenoch, both prominent right-wing members, receive 28 and 22 votes, respectively.
James Cleverly, a centrist candidate, came in third with 21 votes. In this round, Tom Tugendhat, the former Security Minister, secured 17 votes, and Mel Stride, the ex-Work and Pensions Secretary, gained 16 votes.
The voting process will continue until November 2, with Sunak continuing as the interim party leader until then. All the remaining candidates express a desire to mend party divisions and restore its traditional conservative values.
However, there are differences in their approaches to immigration policy. The new leader will face the challenge of restoring the party's reputation, which has been tarnished due to eight years of chaos, scandals, and Brexit-related divisions within the 14-year long government.
Since the Brexit vote in 2016, the Conservatives have experienced a turnover of four party and government leaders, three of whom were forced to leave their posts by their own MPs.
Rishi Sunak's departure as party leader is yet to be determined, as the voting process continues until November 2. Despite the challenges facing the Conservatives, all the remaining contenders, including Rishi Sunak, aim to repair party divisions and uphold traditional conservative values.
