Penny Mordaunt has become the first candidate to throw her hat into the ring in the race to succeed Liz Truss as prime minister, with a pledge to reunite the bitterly divided Tory Party. The Leader of the House – who finished third in the last leadership election – said she had been encouraged by the support she had received from fellow Conservative MPs.
She made her bid public as she appeared to struggle to get an initial wave of backers, the Mirror reports. Candidates need 100 MP nominations each by 2pm on Monday to get on the ballot paper.
She said in a statement posted on social media: "I’ve been encouraged by support from colleagues who want a fresh start, a united party and leadership in the national interest. I’m running to be the leader of the Conservative Party and your Prime Minister – to unite our country, deliver our pledges and win the next GE (general election).”
The announcement came after she held talks with Jeremy Hunt, in which she assured him he could stay on as Chancellor if she won. Sources close to Ms Mordaunt said she had made clear that she would proceed with his budget plan to get the public finances back on track, due to be announced on October 31, the PA news agency reports.
Boris Johnson - who has been on holiday in the Dominican Republic while the government collapses - has mounted a shock comeback bid. By Friday afternoon former Chancellor Rishi Sunak had picked up the largest number of MP supporters, ahead of Mr Johnson.
