The results of round two leadership voting in the UK for the Tory leadership and Priministerial prize are as follows. Each candidate needs 33 votes to continue into the third round.Former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson 126, Current Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt 46, Environment Secretary Michael Gove 41 ,International Developmental Secretary Rory Stewart 37, Home Secretary Sajid Javid 33 and Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab 30. Raab is now eliminated. Johnson has moved closer to the critical number of 157 which is the number of votes at a minimum to capture the majority of MPs in his camp prior to the popular party vote in the final round run off against whoever emerges as his final round opponent. Johnson would need to capture all of Raab‘s 30 votes to do it in the next round and one of the votes now sitting with the other candidates. One of the lower vote candidates like Javid or perhaps though less likely Rory Stewart also might drop out before the next round if they calculate they will be rewarded by Johnson. This would free up 100 votes for the next round from Raab, Stewart and Javid and the odds of Johnson winning at least 31 of them in the next round are much better.He won only 12 of the 50 freed up after the first round elimination and voluntary departure of Hancock. but if that trend continues he‘ ll come very close or win the prize by winning 31 of the 100 freed up votes. Second place will likely go to Hunt or Gove who will be the alternative choice in the party membership vote in the final round.
The BBC hosted a spirited debate with the five candidates this evening. the debate ranged over Brexit on October 31st;repairing the damage to social policy and education from Tory austerity policies and budget cuts; on tax policy and relieving poverty; on multiculturalism and Islamophobia and antisemitism in the U.K. and the Irish backstop, as well as other leading issues.Rory Stewart stood out as the only candidate who stressed that promising to leave without a deal was unacceptable and he committed to not doing this. He also called out the other candidates for their lack of honesty in promising to leave if necessary without a deal if need be.
The diversity of the candidates in terms of religious faith, background and ancestry was also revealing .It reflects the good progress of modern multicultural diverse Britain despite these difficult times. Johnson had a Moslem great grandfather, Jeremy Hunt is married to a Chinese person and they have three children together .Javid is a Moslem whose father was a bus driver and Gove was adopted at a very young age by loving parents of moderate means. With five men but no women still in the race there is further progress to be made in the future.
