Penny Mordaunt has become the first MP to throw her hat in the ring in the contest to replace Liz Truss as prime minister after her dramatic resignation this week.
The leader of the Commons announced her candidacy in a tweet on Friday afternoon, saying fellow Conservatives had urged her to stand to become party leader and take the keys to Number 10.
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Ms Mordaunt, who came third in the last leadership race behind Ms Truss and Rishi Sunak, wrote: “I’ve been encouraged by support from colleagues who want a fresh start, a united party and leadership in the national interest.
“I’m running to be the leader of the Conservative Party and your prime minister – to unite our country, deliver our pledges and win the next general election.”
Ms Mordaunt needs to secure the backing of at least 100 Tory MPs by Monday afternoon to stay in the race.
And so far 16 MPs have publicly stated they will vote for her.
But former Chancellor Mr Sunak is also expected to launch his own bid, with 64 MPs already supporting him.
And rumours are swirling that ex-Prime Minister Boris Johnson could take another shot at the top job, with 36 offering their public endorsement so far – including three cabinet ministers.
Nominations opened on Thursday and will close at 2pm on Monday – and with a total of 357 Tory MPs in Parliament, and the requirement for 100 nominations, there will be a maximum of three candidates on the ballot paper.
The parliamentary party will narrow the field to two, who will then take part in a hustings event organised with news broadcasters, before an online vote for members to choose who they want to lead the party.
The winner will be revealed next Friday.
Ms Mordaunt’s announcement came after reports she had held talks with the current Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, where is she said to have assured him he could stay on in his role if she wins the contest.
Sources close to the candidate also said she had made clear his medium term fiscal plan, set to be announced on 31 October, would go ahead under her premiership.
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In the last leadership election, Ms Mordaunt won 105 nominations, behind Mr Sunak’s 137 and Ms Truss’s 113.
Ms Truss won the final round of voting among Tory party members after campaigning on a mandate to cut taxes to boost economic growth.
But this ultimately proved to be her downfall after her mini-budget unleashed turmoil in the financial markets, forcing her to sack Kwasi Kwarteng as chancellor and make a series of U-turns on the economic policies that brought her into office.
Ms Truss resigned 44 days into her premiership, making her the shortest-serving prime minister in modern British history.