Other contenders who fell out of the race to succeed Theresa May in previous rounds, such as Andrea Leadsom and Dominic Raab, put their foot behind a remaining candidate. The third round of votes for the Tory leadership saw Jeremy Hunt gain 54 votes, with Michael Gove trailing at 51.
Rory Stewart has said today at a rally of supporters in Southbank that he will not be endorsing any of the candidates still left in the race.
Rory Stewart was knocked out of the race yesterday following a drop in support from 37 to 27 votes.
While he faced pressure from his rivals during the leadership debates, he responded today but refusing to publicly support any of the contenders. However, he did say he would vote in the membership vote for leader.
Addressing the crowd of supporter’s at a ‘thank you’ rally he tweeted: ‘I will not be declaring for anyone today – but I will be voting.’
The International Development Secretary entered the race as a relatively unknown but quickly made a name for himself as a ‘moderate’ and anti-no deal candidate.
Mr Stewart was mocked online for his strange gestures and antics during the debate. At one stage he was seen awkwardly removing his tie.
In a humorous reference to the incident, he launched a video following the defeat of his leadership bid thanking his supporters for an “incredible campaign” while removing his tie throughout. He ended the video with the prologue: “Rory walks on.”
He launched a final Southbank Center in Spiegeltent where he encouraged supporters and others to “come and join” him.
“I would love to say thank you. I would love to keep the conversation going. ‘I have been so buoyed up and energised. I am not disappointed by this result because I think we are uncovering something extraordinary in this country and in British politics.” he said.
Mr Stewart made speaking to voters, under the title #RoryWalks, around the country a centrepiece of his campaign. Filming himself speaking at markets and in parks.
His opposition to no deal made Mr Stewart the likely candidate for “soft Brexit” Conservatives. Following his defeat, there are now no contenders left advocating a support for Theresa May’s EU withdrawal agreement.
Now that Sajid Javid has also fallen from the race. It will be up to the Jeremy Hunt and Michael Gove, the remaining challengers to frontrunner Boris Johnson, to appeal to those votes.
The penultimate round and final MP-exclusive vote will be help today at 6pm to decide the final two contenders of the Tory leadership race. One of which will become Prime Minister of the UK.
Sourse: sputniknews.com
