Following the Conservative Party’s worst election defeat in its parliamentary history, former party leader Rishi Sunak has pledged to remain as leader until arrangements are in place for selecting his successor. The contest to replace the former Prime Minister has yet to begin, and so far none of the party’s 121 surviving MPs have announced their intention to run. Jeremy Hunt, who ran for the leadership twice before, has reportedly ruled himself out of the race.
As the party gears up for the upcoming leadership contest, here are some of the potential candidates who may decide to run: Kemi Badenoch is seen as a top contender among the party’s right. The former business secretary has consistently received high approval ratings from party members in surveys conducted by Conservative Home. Suella Braverman, who succeeded Badenoch as home secretary, has not ruled out a leadership run. The 44-year-old MP had a controversial exit from government and has faced criticism for various gaffes.
James Cleverly, who served as foreign secretary under Sunak, has yet to declare his intention to run. Cleverly has been an MP since 2015 and attracted criticism for some of his comments. Priti Patel, a former home secretary under Boris Johnson, resigned from her role amid controversy over unauthorised meetings with Israeli officials. The 52-year-old has said the Tories need to take a “pause and stocktake” following their election loss. Finally, outgoing security minister Tom Tugendhat is seen as being on the centrist wing of the party and has repeatedly refused to rule himself out of bidding to become party leader.
Victoria Atkins, who spent little more than six months in cabinet as health secretary, is being discussed as a potential contender from the moderate wing of the party. Despite her majority significantly dropping, the 48-year-old MP for Louth and Horncastle retained her seat in the general election. Robert Jenrick, who served as housing minister under Boris Johnson, has called the Tories’ defeat “devastating” but refused to talk about his leadership ambitions when asked.
As the contest to replace Sunak heats up, the party will need to unite around a new leader to regain the public’s trust
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