Conservative MPs across Nottinghamshire have been throwing their weight behind prospective leadership candidates following Liz Truss' resignation as Prime Minister. Only the current Leader of the House of Commons, Penny Mordaunt, has confirmed that she is standing in the race at the time of writing.
But former Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss' predecessor, Boris Johnson, have also emerged as front-runners. Only candidates with more than 100 nominations from MPs will go through and if only one candidate crosses this threshold, they will become the next UK Prime Minister on Monday.
Brendan Clarke-Smith, MP for Bassetlaw, was the first MP from Nottinghamshire to nail his colours to the mast, backing Boris Johnson for a return. He told BBC News that the former Prime Minister had "unfinished business" after being forced out of office only weeks ago.
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Whilst many Tory MPs announced their support for a new Conservative leader, Labour MPs from across Nottingham joined Sir Keir Starmer in calling for an immediate general election. Lillian Greenwood said her constituents in Nottingham South were "crying out for a Labour government to sort out the Tories' mess".
Here is a list of where Nottinghamshire's Conservative MPs and where they currently stand:
Lee Anderson (Ashfield)
Lee Anderson has not yet confirmed who he is backing.
Brendan Clarke-Smith (Bassetlaw)
Brendan Clarke-Smith, who is a current Cabinet Office minister, backed Boris Johnson's potential run for office, saying he had "unfinished business". Speaking to Sky News, the Conservative Bassetlaw MP said: "What we need now is someone who can come in and bring people together, someone who actually has that mandate from the people of the last General Election, a mandate from party members, someone who can get this party going again and get us winning elections again.
"The only person I think who ticks all those boxes is Boris Johnson."
We need somebody who can turn the tide and avert the disaster of a Labour government. We need Boris Johnson.
He won the support of the public with a historic 80 seat majority. He won the support of the party. He is a winner. 1/2— Brendan Clarke-Smith MP (@Bren4Bassetlaw)
Darren Henry (Broxtowe)
Darren Henry has not yet confirmed who he is backing.
Tom Randall (Gedling)
Tom Randall is currently undecided but a spokesperson for the Gedling MP said he would be "considering matters over the weekend." Mr Randall said: "I didn't vote for Liz Truss, but on her election victory I wished her well and wanted her to succeed, for all our sakes. While her policy on helping people with their energy bills will be a great relief for the coming winter, her wider economic policy clearly did not have the confidence of the markets.
"People want their politicians to get on with doing the things that they were elected to do: helping their constituents and trying to solve their problems. I want to see the return of firm, effective Tory government in short order. I'm therefore pleased that the forthcoming leadership contest will conclude quickly, with a new Prime Minister to be decided possibly as early as Monday evening."
Ben Bradley (Mansfield)
Ben Bradley has not confirmed who he is backing yet, and is instead running an online poll for Mansfield residents to have their say on who would be the best candidate out of Boris Johnson, Rishi Sunak or Penny Mordaunt. Mr Bradley wrote on social media: "Once again I'm tasked with making a choice about who comes next, and I need your views please. I want to ensure that we can choose someone who has Mansfield's support. Three front-runners have emerged so far, with only a maximum of three people likely to be able to meet the required level of MP support you need to get yourself on the ballot paper."
Robert Jenrick (Newark)
Robert Jenrick, who is serving as a health minister under Liz Truss' outgoing premiership, has backed Rishi Sunak to become the next Prime Minister. He wrote on Twitter that he would provide integrity, judgement and competence.
"I’m backing Rishi Sunak to be our Prime Minister," Mr Jenrick said. "Rishi will restore public confidence in our party and market confidence in our economy. He will unite the Conservatives and lead our country with integrity, judgement and competence. #ready4rishi"
Mr Jenrick backed Mr Sunak in the previous Tory leadership contest, which he subsequently lost to Ms Truss.
Ruth Edwards (Rushcliffe)
A spokesperson for Ruth Edwards said that she was not available for full comment, but that she would be backing Rishi Sunak in the leadership contest.
Mark Spencer (Sherwood)
Mark Spencer has not yet confirmed who he is backing.
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