Tom Tugendhat has insisted he can replicate the recent electoral feat of Keir Starmer and lead the Conservative Party back to power in just one parliamentary term.
It came as Tugendhat, the shadow security minister, joined James Cleverly, the shadow home secretary, in announcing he wants to be the next Conservative leader.
Nominations in the party leadership contest opened at 7 pm on Wednesday and close at 2.30 pm on 29 July. Candidates will need the support of 10 MPs in order to make it onto the ballot paper.
According to the rules of the contest, Conservative MPs will then need to narrow down to four candidates, who will make their case to party members at the Conservative conference this autumn.
The four candidates will then be whittled down to a final two, with the winner chosen by party members and announced on 2 November.
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Tugendhat, the former security minister, was questioned over whether during he believed he could win an election as leader in just five years’ time.
He told BBC Breakfast: “Yes, it is possible to do that. You’ve got to restore trust. You’ve got to demonstrate delivery and you’ve got to be able to listen to the British people to make sure you understand where the challenges are.
“But you can look at what Keir Starmer achieved, frankly, he went from his worst electoral result to his best in five years. We can do the same but we need to be united. We need to regain the trust of the British people and we need to be ready to deliver.”
Tugendhat’s comments came after shadow home secretary James Cleverly became the first Conservative to declare his candidacy for the party’s leadership on Tuesday
Cleverly, who held a number of senior roles in government, revealed his decision in a video on social media.
In the post, which saw him return to his childhood home in southeast London, Cleverly said the Conservatives needed to “re-establish our reputation as the party who, in government, helps grow the economy, helps people achieve their goals, their dreams, and their aspirations”.
Several Conservative MPs are expected to announce they are running for their party’s leadership over the coming days, including shadow work and pensions secretary Mel Stride, former immigration minister Robert Jenrick and Dame Priti Patel.
Josh Self is Editor of Politics.co.uk, follow him on X/Twitter here.
Politics.co.uk is the UK’s leading digital-only political website. Subscribe to our daily newsletter for all the latest election news and analysis.
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