Now that Theresa May has officially announced she is resigning as Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party, the various leadership contenders hoping to take her place will be furiously canvassing their colleagues and stepping up their campaigns.
But who are the favourites to succeed her so far? According to the betting exchange $Markets, the current chances for the would-be Tory leaders stand at:
Boris Johnson: 40 per cent Dominic Raab: 19 per cent Michael Gove: 10 per cent Andrea Leadsom: 6 per cent Jeremy Hunt: 5 per cent Rory Stewart: 5 per cent Penny Mordaunt: 4 per cent
Leading the pack by a wide margin on 40 per cent (no doubt due to his popularity among grassroots members and wide support among Brexiteer MPs) is Boris Johnson. He’s followed by fellow Brexiteer Dominic Raab on 19 per cent – who is a full 9 percentage points ahead of third favourite Michael Gove. Andrea Leadsom is currently in a respectable fourth place, while Jeremy Hunt (who considers himself a frontrunner) will be very disappointed to be in fifth place, with the odds indicating he only has a 5 per cent chance of becoming leader. Lagging behind him is the new international development secretary Rory Stewart, who has officially announced he’s running and defence secretary, and dark horse, Penny Mordaunt. Not even listed in the favourites is current home secretary Sajid Javid, with the bookies’ odds suggesting he only has a 3 per cent chance of becoming leader.
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