British minister Penny Mordaunt on Friday launched her bid to switch Liz Truss as prime minister, turning into the primary Conservative lawmaker to announce they’re operating.
Mordaunt, 49, has navigated the tenures of the 4 prime ministers she has served beneath, maintaining her distance from Boris Johnson’s scandal-ridden time in energy and staying in cabinet beneath Theresa May to make her help for Brexit felt.
This is the second time she is operating for the highest job, after simply lacking out on the ultimate two within the contest to turn into the chief of the ruling Conservative Party earlier this yr. That race noticed Truss defeat former finance minister Rishi Sunak.
“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 GE (General Election),” Mordaunt stated on Twitter.
“I’ve been encouraged by support from colleagues who want a fresh start, a united party and leadership in the national interest.”
Bookmakers place Mordaunt third, behind Sunak and Johnson, who’re additionally anticipated to enter the race to succeed Truss.
Under Truss, she was appointed chief of the House of Commons, a task which additionally by probability gave her the next profile job as “Lord President of the Privy Council” – which means she presided over the formal announcement of Queen Elizabeth’s dying and the proclamation of the brand new King Charles.
Largely unknown exterior Westminster previous to taking an early opinion ballot lead amongst Conservative Party members earlier this yr, among the public might have first seen Mordaunt on the fact TV present Splash! in 2014, the place celebrities learnt to dive. She carried out a stomach flop.
She joined May’s cabinet in 2017 as worldwide improvement minister however a stint as defence secretary lasted simply 85 days, when she was sacked by Johnson, reportedly for backing his rival Jeremy Hunt within the management marketing campaign.
Johnson ultimately introduced Mordaunt again into authorities in February 2020.
As chief of the House of Commons, a task charged with setting out the federal government enterprise, her no-nonsense angle gained her admirers.
