The results of the third round of MPs voting to be the next Tory leader are in.
8.55 p.m. Has the Penny dropped?
James Forsyth writes… Penny Mordaunt had a mixed night this evening. Her lead over Liz Truss is still in double figures, but she actually polled one fewer vote than she had on Thursday. In her statement tonight she heaps praise on Tom Tugendhat, saying they ‘are both committed to a clean start for the party’ and lauding him as ‘one of the strongest assets on the Conservative green benches.’ It also contains an implicit dig at the Truss campaign, with a declaration that she is ‘running a truly clean campaign’.
8.45 p.m. Where do Tugendhat’s votes go?
Katy Balls writes… While Rishi Sunak looks on course for the final two barring an upset, it’s much more unclear who is likely to join him in the final two. There is very little between the other three candidates. With another ballot due in less than 24 hours, expect a late night of horse trading between the campaign teams. Penny Mordaunt backer George Freeman attempted to put a positive spin on Mordaunt losing a vote – suggesting that he was relieved it wasn’t more than that after a weekend of brutal attacks. The problem for Truss is that the votes up for grabs now are Tugendhat’s – and the general expectation had been that these are more likely to go to Mordaunt or Sunak who are viewed to have more appeal to One-Nation Tories. However, chief Tugendhat backer Anne-Marie Trevelyan has been very critical of Mordaunt. Could Badenoch be in contention for some of these votes? What Badenoch and Tugendhat have in common is that they are fresh faces – so there is a chance that some of Tugendhat’s backers move to the remaining insurgent in the race.
8.40 p.m. Will Badenoch stand down?
Steerpike writes… Why fight a challenger if you’re not confident of winning? That’s the thinking from some in the Truss camp, who this evening have been urging the only other right-wing challenger – Kemi Badenoch – from standing against their woman. Iain Duncan Smith, a former Tory leader and keen backer of Liz Truss, has told ITV that Badenoch should stand aside to ‘unite the right’ and defeat Penny Mordaunt for the second spot against Rishi Sunak. Badenoch narrowed the gap between her and Truss in this round from 15 votes to 11. Could Kemi find an additional dozen backers and overhaul the Foreign Secretary in tomorrow’s ballot? Unsurprisingly Team Badenoch remains defiant and won’t quit. As Baroness Morrissey pointed out: ‘If Kemi Badenoch believes as I do that this vote is existential for the Conservatives, which too few MPs realise, she will stay in place and make her case. It’s not about right or left, Brexit/Remain. It’s more significant than that.’
8.15 p.m. The economic debate could get fiery
Kate Andrews writes… Having secured 115 MP votes in the latest round, Rishi Sunak is just a few shy now of securing himself a place in the final two. This means that his economic perspective – dominated by fiscal responsibility and getting inflation down – is all but certain to be presented as an option to Tory grassroot voters. With Penny Mordaunt and Liz Truss still holding second and third place, respectively, it also seems likely that the final two will include a candidate that is far more comfortable with borrowing more money, especially to finance tax cuts. So it looks like we’re gearing up for a real economic debate this summer, over tax and spend priorities and perhaps an even more fundamental debate about political philosophy. It’s bound to get heated. But it’s a long overdue conversation the Tory party needs to have, as it has been drifting closer to Labour (especially during the Boris Johnson years) on issues concerning the economy.
8.10 p.m. The right is still split
Katy Balls writes… Tom Tugendhat is out of the leadership contest after coming last in the third ballot of the contest. Given this was pretty priced in, it’s the figures for the other candidates which are more intriguing. At 115, Rishi Sunak is nearing the 120 votes he requires in order to make the final two. Meanwhile, Penny Mordaunt’s support has actually fallen – she has actually lost a vote.
But most curious is the fight to be the candidate on the right of the party. Liz Truss is on 71 votes – gaining seven votes since the last round – so remains ahead of Kemi Badenoch. However, Badenoch – who is on 58 votes – won nine votes. This suggests that more of Suella Braverman’s backers went to Badenoch than Truss – despite Braverman imploring her supporters to back the Foreign Secretary.
8.05 p.m. A mixed night for Truss
James Forsyth writes… Supporters of Liz Truss were optimistic that they would get close to Penny Mordaunt on this ballot – and she has closed the gap but not by much. Truss put on seven votes while Mordaunt fell back, leaving the gap at 11. The only consolation for Truss is that Kemi Badenoch has not closed the gap on her that much, putting on nine votes.
8.00 p.m. Tugendhat knocked out, Sunak surges ahead
Tom Tugendhat has been eliminated from the contest to become Tory leader. Rishi Sunak still leads the pack, while Penny Mordaunt has lost support. The full results were as follows:
7.40 p.m. Laughter and nerves as Tories vote
Steerpike writes… Outside Committee Room 10 there was an air of expectation and excitement earlier today. Much like May’s local council elections, tellers for the different camps sat outside, zealously watching those entering and leaving the room. Dehenna Davison, the queen of the Red Wall, was there keeping count with a pencil for Team Truss; Andrew Bowie, the acceptable face of Scottish Toryism, was there for the Sunak camp. Doorkeepers reminded those entering to display their passes and phones, to dissuade those voting from taking pictures of their ballot. Proceedings largely passed without incident – though Rehman Chishti, whose bid for power ended after he failed to receive a single endorsement from another MP was greeted with chants of ‘five more years!’ from colleagues in attendance.
7.30 p.m. What happened in previous rounds?
A quick reminder of how things went for the candidates in the first two rounds.
First round
1. Rishi Sunak – 88 (24.6%)
2. Penny Mordaunt – 67 (18.7%)
3. Liz Truss – 50 (14%)
4. Kemi Badenoch – 40 (11.2%)
5. Tom Tugendhat – 37 (10.3%)
6. Suella Braverman – 32 (8.9%)
7. Nadhim Zahawi – 25 (7%) (eliminated)
8. Jeremy Hunt – 18 (5%) (eliminated)
Second round
1. Rishi Sunak – 101 (28.2%)
2. Penny Mordaunt – 83 (23.2%)
3. Liz Truss – 64 (17.9%)
4. Kemi Badenoch – 49 (13.7%)
5. Tom Tugendhat – 32 (8.9%)
6. Suella Braverman – 27 (7.5%) (eliminated)
7.25 p.m. The fight on the right
Katy Balls writes… Will there be an upset on the right of the party? Michael Gove has just given an interview to LBC where he said his candidate of choice Kemi Badenoch could win votes from some of Suella Braverman’s backers this evening (after she dropped out in the second round). But Braverman had pushed her backers to transfer their votes to Liz Truss. Gove argues that lots of MPs are having buyers’ remorse over the other candidates in a not-too-subtle dig at the Foreign Secretary. Truss needs to show this evening that she is making enough gains to rival Penny Mordaunt – who came second in the past two rounds – for a space in the final two.
7.00 p.m. What happened at this afternoon’s hustings?
Katy Balls writes… At 8 p.m. the verdict of the third knock-out round of the contest will be announced by the 1922 committee and the five candidates will be whittled down to four. The fact that Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss both withdrew from Tuesday’s Sky debates this morning (leading to the whole event being cancelled) confirms that both believe they are on track for the final two, so don’t need to take unnecessary risks that could benefit the lesser known candidates.
This afternoon MPs have been watching 1922 hustings. I understand Truss focused on the economy – pitching herself as the only candidate able to deliver a truly conservative economic plan from day one and the best placed figure to rival Sunak in the final two. Meanwhile, Sunak pivoted his key message away from the economy – instead going on electability. He told MPs he had a five-point plan to win the party a fifth term – which includes mass fundraising to boost CCHQ, updating the technology used for campaigning, hiring more staff to work for the party and appealing to changing demographics – especially Asian voters – in Tory seats.
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