Sun Nov 03 03:44:38 UTC 2024: ## Tories Choose Between Badenoch and Jenrick to Replace Sunak as Party Leader
The Conservative Party leadership race has reached its final stage, with voting by party members closing at 5 pm GMT today. The winner will be announced on Saturday morning, nearly four months after Sunak’s resignation triggered the contest.
The two remaining candidates are Kemi Badenoch, former Business Secretary, and Robert Jenrick, former Immigration Minister. Both candidates have consistently emphasized their commitment to restoring public trust in the Conservatives, who suffered their worst general election defeat in July, losing 121 seats in the House of Commons with just 24% of the vote.
Badenoch has focused on returning to “core Conservative values,” advocating for a smaller state that “does fewer things but does them well.” She has been criticized for her lack of detail in policy proposals.
Jenrick, on the other hand, has been more vocal in his criticisms of the Sunak administration, specifically on the issue of immigration. He has called for a legal limit on net migration and advocates for the UK’s withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights, arguing it “makes it impossible to secure our borders.”
Both candidates have been critical of the budget under Sunak, with Badenoch describing it as “a budget that would have been written by Jeremy Corbyn with Keir Starmer at the helm.” Jenrick called the budget “a disgrace,” blaming voters’ anger on the Labour Party’s “dishonesty” after their election promise not to raise taxes on working people.
The race has also been overshadowed by controversy surrounding the recent Southport stabbing attack, where a 18-year-old man was arrested and charged with the murder of three young women. Jenrick suggested information about the attack had been “suppressed,” while Badenoch stated that there were “questions to be answered” from the government, police, and lawyers.
The Conservative Party is hoping the leadership contest will restore faith in the party, but it remains to be seen whether either candidate can convince the public that they can offer the change needed to regain voters’ trust.
First Piper 