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The Conservatives began the process of finding a new leader, which involves balloting MPs and then sending two names for party members to choose between. Eight candidates initially qualified for the process set out by the 1922 Committee, by gaining nominations from 20 MPs: Kemi Badenoch, Suella Braverman, Jeremy Hunt, Penny Mordaunt, Rishi Sunak, Liz Truss, Tom Tugendhat and Nadhim Zahawi. Grant Shapps, Rehman Chishti and Sajid Javid withdrew before the off. Ben Wallace, the Defence Secretary, a fancied contender, had decided not to stand, as had Steve Baker, who was not widely fancied. Michael Gove (whom Downing Street had denounced a week earlier as a ‘snake’ when the Prime Minister, attempting to hold on to power, sacked him) did not stand, and nor did Priti Patel. Boris Johnson said he ‘wouldn’t want to damage anybody’s chances’ by offering his backing to a candidate.
The runner Sir Mo Farah, aged 39, revealed that he had been brought illegally from Djibouti to Britain aged nine by a woman he had never met and made to work as a servant in a family; his real name was Hussein Abdi Kahin.
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