Priti Patel is out of the race to be the next Tory leader. In the first knockout round of the contest, the former Home Secretary received the lowest number of votes at 14, behind Mel Stride who was in fifth place with 16 votes. It is Robert Jenrick who has the most to celebrate – after coming out on top in the ballot with 28 votes. His supporters have said this week that they believe he is ‘nailed on’ to make the final two, who are then picked by the membership. While he still needs to gain more support, this result will add to the sense that Jenrick is a serious contender.
With another knockout round next week, the battle is now on to hoover up Patel’s supporters
As for the other candidates: the initial bookies’ favourite Kemi Badenoch came second with 22 votes. Then James Cleverly was close behind in third on 21 and Tom Tugendhat was on fourth on 17.
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