Tories shocked at Cleverly exit while Labour MP says Badenoch-Jenrick contest is a ‘gift’ – UK politics live | Politics

Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenoch have both posted tributes on social media to James Cleverly.

Jenrick says:

What a campaign @JamesCleverly. You fought brilliantly and had a great conference. The Conservative Party needs you in its top team in the years ahead.

And Badenoch says:

Commiserations to my friend, @JamesCleverly. He ran a campaign full of energy, ideas and optimism. James has shown great leadership at many levels including holding two of the great offices of state. He has dedicated himself to the Conservative party and I look forward to continuing to work with him.

Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick will debate each other on Thursday next week at 7pm on GB News (of course), Christopher Hope from the station reports.

The only agreed TV leadership event between Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenoch is 7pm on Thursday next week exclusively on @GBNEWS.

Here is video of the moment the result was announced.

Jackie Doyle-Price, a former Tory MP, has said the party should change the way it elects its leaders.

Conservative MPs should vote for who they want to be leader. Then they might just get the leader they want. It is time to change the rules to get rid of elimination ballots as they are simply driving perverse behaviour

Paul Goodman, a former Tory MP and former editor of the ConservativeHome website who is now a Conservative peer, told Radio 4’s PM programme this evening that the ballot result this afternoon was a “very difficult” one for the party because MPs have failed to give members a clear steer as to who they want as leader.

He said the result was broadly similar to the final ballot result in 2001, when three candidates (Ken Clarke, Iain Duncan Smith and Michael Portillo) roughly got a third of the votes each. He went on:

I’m afraid that did not do the Conservative party, or Iain in the long run, any good.

You need to be able to send a strong signal to the members, who have the final vote, that the parliamentary party is lined up behind one person. And that has not happened.

Conservative members will feel “disenfranchised” by this result, the Tory MP Roger Gale has said.

I fear that many loyal members of the Conservative Party will feel disenfranchised by this result: I have to date not declared my endorsement and I do not propose to do so now. 1/2

But the figures are not decisive and although one candidate- James Cleverly – has been eliminated the Parliamentary Party has sent a very confused message to those who will now have to lead not only the Party but the Official Opposition in the House of Commons. 2/2

One Tory MP said they were now getting messages from local members saying “what the hell are you doing?” after two candidates from the right got onto the final ballot, PA Media reports. PA says:

The MP said: “One of two things has happened. Either a number of people lent James Cleverly their votes yesterday and rolled them back. Or James Cleverly’s lent votes to Robert Jenrick and over-egged it.”

But there was also the possibility of individuals backing their second favourite candidate, assuming their preferred choice was already safe.

The MP said supporters of both Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenoch had been asking MPs suspected of backing James Cleverly to lend support to one of them to get them on the ballot.

The Tory source said they did not “fall for that” but “it’s possible some people may have been dumb enough”.

Tim Farron, the former Lib Dem leader, says he thinks the election result provides a huge opportunity for his party.

Well…blimey! I think this could actually be the point when the Tory party ceases to be a movement contending for government. Lib Dems now have a very serious responsibility and opportunity to fill the gap. This is our moment.

One Nation Tories warn Badenoch/Jenrick shortlist could damage party’s chances of electoral recovery

Tim Shipman from the Sunday Times thinks it could work out well for James Cleverly after all.

Cleverly says being knocked out of Tory leadership contest ‘massively disappointing’

Here is more reaction from commentators to what just happened in the Tory leadership ballot.

From Christopher Hope at GB News

Westminster is in shock at the exit of James Cleverly. A proper political jaw dropper, the biggest in Tory politics since Boris Johnson dropped out of the Tory leadership contest in 2016. One Conservative strategist told me: “There is no amount of campaigning, messaging and briefing that can account for the sheer duplicity of Tory MPs.

From Katy Balls from the Spectator

🚨What just happened?!

As one Tory strategist puts it:

‘No amount of briefing, strategy or campaigning can account for the sheer duplicity and scheming of Conservative MPs.’

And here is an article from her Spectator article on the vote.

For what it’s worth, there are currently two theories doing the rounds among MPs. The first is that Team Cleverly attempted vote lending to have a preferred opponent in the final two and it spectacularly backfired. The other theory is that the vote lending took place on Tuesday – with some Jenrick supporters trying to boost Cleverly to hurt Badenoch – only it went wrong, when Jenrick actually went back two. Therefore they had to consolidate today. In truth, no-one will really ever know what happened in the secret ballot – but the numbers suggest either game-playing or a new level of indecisiveness among Tory MPs.

From Sam Coates from Sky News

I’m being told that while Teams Badenoch and Jenrick were hitting the phones James Cleverly was prominent first on the Commons terrace and then at Boris Johnson’s book launch for a long stint.

Perhaps some over confidence?

From Kate McCann from Times Radio

From ITV’s Robert Peston

I did not see that coming. Cleverly out. Badenoch vs Jenrick. Yesterday I was told Jenrick lent votes to Cleverly to oust Tugendhat. I didn’t believe it. Now that gossip feels credible

From the FT’s Robert Shrimsley

Golly. Does this mean Jenrick was vote lending yesterday to try to block Kemi? On one hand it seems too tight to take risks, on other why would Cleverly fall back?

Other option is that Cleverly backers thought it was safe to try to ensure he faced a weaker candidate – although given he hadn’t yet reached the threshold that would surely be too stupid for the “most sophisticated electorate in the world”

From Lewis Goodall from the News Agents podcast

The end of instability in British politics was greatly exaggerated.

Audible gasps from Tory MPs at Cleverly’s exit