Rishi Sunak, the UK Prime Minister, will have one major objective as he head to the Conservative Party’s conference this weekend and that will be to convince Tory supporters and party members that he can win the UK’s next general election.
However, according to a report by Bloomberg, Tory lawmakers are preparing for a scenario where they are expecting their party leader to lose. Sunak in order to win back voters have rolled back measures to tackle carbon emissions and said he would once again assess the HS2 high-speed rail link, the UK’s flagship infrastructure project.
But polls suggest that he will not win the next elections which must be called by January 2025 even though he clawed back ground against the Labour Party, who now lead by a 21-point advantage in the polls.
Over two dozen lawmakers speaking to the news outlet said several Tories are working to mount a successful leadership run should Sunak fail despite the Tory chief staving off the threat of an internal rebellion.
The Bloomberg report said at least 13 top Tories are lining up to take Sunak’s place.
Sunak’s supporters say that they are not distracted and such events are beyond their control. Some believe he could still win and continue as UK Prime Minister if Labour fails to secure a majority.
Here Is A List of Tories Who Could Replace Him:
- Kemi Badenoch: Badenoch is the current UK business secretary and staunch Brexiteer. She is also the most popular Cabinet minister, according to ConservativeHome, a website dedicated to Conservative Party issues and news. The report says she is the bookmakers’ favourite.
- Liz Truss: UK’s shortest reigning Prime Minister may give it a go again, three people familiar with the developments told Bloomberg. If the Tories lose she could fight for the role of opposition leader and people close to her claimed that “pro-growth” MPs are loyal to her. She, however, said that she does not want to be Prime Minister again.
- Suella Braverman: Braverman could be a strong contender because she has taken hardline positions on immigration and culture issues and gave indications that she might resign from her role as home secretary if Sunak does not leave the European Convention on Human Rights. Observers claim that her supporters in Tory leadership are a vocal minority and they do not have real numbers.
- James Cleverly: The foreign secretary is being touted as a unity candidate and is seen palatable to Tory moderates.Penny Mordaunt: Mordaunt has emerged as the hope for the Tory centrists. She is popular in the party grassroots. She is the current leader of the House of Commons.
- Tom Tugendhat: He is the second person the Tory centrists are backing. The centrists feel that Tugendhat, Mordaunt and Cleverly could halt a right-wing takeover.
- Priti Patel: A rival of Suella Braverman and a splitter of the votes of far-right leaders within the Tories.
- The other leaders who could challenge Sunak are: Grant Shapps, Michael Gove, Jacob Rees-Mogg, current education secretary Gillian Keegan, energy secretary Claire Coutinho and House of Lords peer David Frost.