Rishi Sunak to quit as Tory leader after Conservatives hammered in UK polls: Who will replace him?

For Rishi Sunak, it’s all over.

Sunak has handed in his resignation as UK prime minister after the Conservative Party suffered a massive defeat at the hands of Labour.

“This is a difficult day, but I leave this job honored to have been prime minister of the best country in the world,” Sunak said in his final speech outside 10 Downing Street.

Labour led by Sir Keir Starmer has racked up a mammoth 412 seats in the UK polls.

The Conservatives, meanwhile, have been reduced to just 121 seats.

Sunak has also quit as Tory leader, though he said he will remain in the position until the  race for the new party chief begins.

The Telegraph quoted Sir Brandon Lewis, the former Conservative chairman as saying his party MPs would render their pick by the end of July.

Meanwhile, the party workers would decide the new leaders “in the next few months.”

But who could replace Sunak as the new head of the Conservative Party?

Let’s take a closer look:

Kemi Badenoch

Badenoch, a former banker, could be the favourite to replace Sunak.

Badenoch, the UK’s Minster for Women and Equalities, has become a “darling of Conservative right-wingers" over “direct approach and dedication to ‘anti-woke’ principles”, according to the BBC.

Badenoch won her North West Essex seat by 2,600 votes.

As per The Telegraph, Badenoch in May had the rating of any Cabinet minister among readers of the influential ConservativeHome website.

However, it may not all be smooth sailing for Badenoch.

As Tom Newton Dunn noted in the London Evening Standard “she is far from a shoo-in.”

“While she is an original and loved by the members, she can be bad-tempered and dismissive inside Westminster and is far less loved by Tory MPs.”

Badenoch in recent days got in a spat with ex-Doctor Who actor David Tennant who told her to “shut up” in a speech on LGBTQ rights.

Badenoch, who some have labelled a culture warrior, accused Tennant of being “blinded” by his ideology.

Suella Braverman

The Indian-origin Braverman has been eyeing Sunak’s chair for months.

Indeed, Braverman wasted little time lashing out at Sunak the day after she was sacked as British home secretary in November, calling his approach “uncertain, weak” and a betrayal of his promises.

Braverman as home secretary had championed the government’s stalled plan to send asylum-seekers who arrive in Britain in boats on a one-way trip to Rwanda.

She has emerged victorious in the newly-created Fareham and Waterlooville constituency.

Braverman defeated Labour’s Gemma Furnivall by over 6,000 votes.

“I’m sorry that my party didn’t listen to you,” she said in a press conference. “The Conservative party has let you down.”

“You, the great British people, voted for us for over 14 years, and we did not keep our promises, despite promising time after time that we would do those things,” she added.

Although Braverman is a rallying figure for some Conservatives, she has the support of a minority of the party’s lawmakers.

More centrist Tories see her as reviving the authoritarian and intolerant “nasty party” image that the Conservatives have long worked to shed, starting with the government of Prime Minister David Cameron between 2010 and 2016.

Though the tough on immigration leader remains popular with her party base, she may be second choice behind business secretary Badenoch.

Penny Mordaunt

Thought to be a moderate Conservative, Mordaunt is a Royal Navy reservist.

She was the UK’s first woman defence secretary.

Mordaount lost her Portsmouth North in today’s poll.

She was defeated by Labour’s Amanda Martin by fewer than 1,000 votes.

According to the Express, the Conservative Party constitution states that the leader of the party “shall be drawn from those elected to Parliament”.

So while this would seemingly rule Mordant out at first glance, it is important to note that the Tories could always change their party constitution.

The newspaper quoted the Institute for Government as saying: “Among smaller parties, it is quite common for party leaders not to sit in the House of Commons.”

Indeed, it cited the example of Reform leader Nigel Farage who previously led the party despite not being a sitting MP – though that will now change with his victory.

As per The Telegraph, Mordaunt was the third most popular Cabinet minister among ConservativeHome readers in May.

The Guardian earlier this year reported that Mordaunt was being considered as a potential consensus candidate to replace Sunak.

Mordaunt raised her profile during King Charles’ coronation last year when she became the first woman to perform the ceremonial exchange of swords.

“I was so honoured to be part of the coronation along with thousands of others who played their part,” Mordaunt told PEOPLE Magazine.

Priti Patel

Patel, like Braverman, is another Indian-origin MP.

Like Braverman, Patel too served as UK home secretary in the Boris Johnson regime.

Patel too held onto her seat in Essex’s Witham – which she has held since 2010.

Patel has been involved in multiple controversies.

Patel in 2020 made an “unreserved apology” after an inquiry found she bullied Home Office staff.

In 2017, Patel was asked to resign as the international development secretary by then Prime Minister Theresa May over  unauthorised communications with Israeli officials.

Patel in recent months has seemingly surpassed Braverman with support from the Tory party faithful in recent months.

Patel is expected to present Badenoch with her toughest challenge when it comes to winning the hearts and minds of the party base.

The Telegraph reported that “figures from across the party wanted her to stand as a potential unifying candidate who could end the infighting and provide a credible leader of the Opposition.”

Tom Tugendhat

Tugendhat was the UK’s security minister.

Tugendhat has been re-elected to his Tonbridge seat in Kent.

Tugendhat won  20,517 votes against Labour’s Lewis Bailey who got 9,351 votes and the Green’s Anna Cope, who received 7,596 votes.

This has been a very, very difficult night for the Conservative Party,” Tugendhat said after the results. “This has clearly been one of those moments where we really do need to stop and rethink where we’re going.

Tugendhat previously ran for Tory leadership in 2022.

As per The Telegraph, Tugendhat comes from the Conservative Party’s ‘moderate wing.’

Politico reported that Tugendhat has been “working quietly in the background” to test the level of support he has among colleagues.

The Telegraph quoted bookmaker William Hill as saying  Tugendhat was now the second favourite behind Badenoch to take over the reins of the Conservative Party.

Jeremy Hunt

Hunt is the former finance minister of Britain.

Hunt held on to his parliamentary seat in southern England on Friday, fending off a fierce challenge from the smaller Liberal Democrat party.

Hunt, a Conservative lawmaker who was also health secretary and foreign secretary during 11 years at the top of government, was tipped to be the biggest scalp on the night, as the Conservatives lost seats across the country.

But after surviving the challenge, Hunt’s odds of taking over as Conservative Party chief have improved according to William Hill.

James Cleverly

Cleverly was the UK’s home secretary.  He previously served as education secretary and foreign secretary.

Cleverly was re-elected as Member of Parliament from Braintree in Essex.

Cleverly defeated Labour’s Matthew Wright, who got 13,744 votes.

Meanwhile, Reform UK’s Richard Thomson came in third with 11,436 votes, while Liberal Democrat Kieron Franks netted 2,879 votes.

The Green Party’s Paul Thorogood got 2,878 votes, and Independent David Heather received 767 votes.

The Army Reserve Lieutenant Colonel is thought to “lack the appetite” to follow Sunak given his wife Susie’s cancer treatment in recent years, as per The Times.

However, Cleverly is reportedly being “urged to stand by some centrist colleagues.”

As per The Week, Cleverly will not say no “given the uncertainty of the state of the party post-election.”

As per The Guardian, Cleverly is “well known and affable, and can be a good communicator.”

However, his proximity to Sunak may be his downfall as Tory MPs and party workers may want a complete break from the past.

Grant Shapps

Shapps, a centrist, was the UK’s defence secretary.

As per The Guardian, Shapps is thought to be the ‘insider’s insider’ and is said to have made spreadsheets tracking support for other candidates in the past.

However, like Cleverly, Shapps has been front and centre in the Conservative Party for over a decade.

He too may also fall prey to the demand for change from the Tory base.

Shapps on Friday lost the Welwyn-Hatfield constituency in Hertfordshire to Labour’s Andrew Lewin – ending a 19-year stint as MP.

BBC quoted Shapps as saying that the voters had tired of an ’endless political soap opera" and that “the people do not vote for divided parties”.

Victoria Atkins

Atkins was the UK’s health secretary.

Though she has been an MP since 2015, Atkins is little-known.

She became health secretary in the recent Cabinet reshuffle.

As per The Guardian, Atkins is thought to be a ‘good communicator.’

Atkins on Friday held onto her Louth & Horncastle seat – defeating Reform UK’s Sean Matthews and Labour’s Jonathan Slater.

“I’m very pleased but enormously honoured to be re-elected. This is my home, I love representing the people of Louth & Horncastle, and it’s an incredible privilege. I hope others are as pleased that I’ve been re-elected and I’m looking forward to the next five years,” Atkins was quoted as saying by MSN.

Robert Jenrick

Jenrick, the former immigration minister, quit Sunak’s Cabinet after Braverman was sacked.

According to The Guardian, some in the party see Jenrick as nothing more than a B-list Braverman.

He is thought to be organised and eager to run for the top job.

Jenrick was so little-known before his rise under Johnson that he was called ‘Robert Generic.’

He has since created a new avatar for himself as a migration and culture warrior.

However, with stars like Badenoch, Patel and Braverman to choose from, the Tory workers are unlikely to go for Jenrick.

Jenrick was re-elected as MP for Newark on Friday – defeating Labour’s Saj Ahmed by 3,572 votes.

Steve Baker

Baker was the Minister for Northern Ireland.

The MP from Wycombe lost his seat in today’s poll.

“I’m sad for our country because Labour are going to be a disaster.. I wanted to win this.. But for me personally, thank God I’m free.. It’s over.. And I’m glad,” Baker told BBC.

Baker had won the seat in 2019 with a margin of 4,214 votes.

Baker, a senior Tory backbencher, twice chaired the European Research Group (ERG) of Brexiteer MPs before Britain left the EU in 2020.

David Cameron

Cameron is the former British prime minister.

Widely regarded as politically moderate and socially liberal, he had returned to Sunak’s government in the Cabinet shuffle that ousted Braverman.

Sunak then appointed him foreign secretary, making Cameron the first ex-prime minister for half a century to hold another Cabinet post.

His return to the head of the Tory party would be a massive twist in the tale.

However, as The Telegraph noted, this may be a tall order for the man who has a negative approval rating with ConservativeHome readers in May.

While Cameron does not technically need to have a seat in the House of Commons to lead the Tory party in Opposition, this scenario is unlikely in the extreme.

Boris Johnson

Johnson replacing Sunak if anything would be an even more incredible story.

Such a development would be a huge irony given that it was Sunak’s resignation that was arguably the final blow which toppled Johnson after months of ethics scandals.

However, the party seems to have moved on from the scandals and tumult of Johnson’s leadership.

Few, if any from the party, would be willing to give Johnson another look.

Nigel Farage

This is perhaps the most outlandish scenario on the table.

Farage, the leader of Reform UK, isn’t even a member of the Tories.

Farage has even said it is his mission to ‘destroy the party’, as per The Guardian.

Farage on Friday won a seat in the UK Parliament – on his eight attempt.

He emerged victorious in the seaside English town of Clacton-on-Sea as voters deserted Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservative Party.

Farage, whose career of anti-immigration, pro-Brexit campaigning has made him one of Britain’s most recognisable and divisive political figures, comfortably beat the Conservative candidate Giles Watling who had previously held the seat.

“There is a massive gap on the center right of British politics and my job is to fill it and that’s exactly what I’m gonna do,” Farage said after the result was announced.

“My plan is to build a mass national movement over the course of the next few years and hopefully be big enough to challenge the general election properly in 2029.”

“Believe me, folks, this is just the first step of something that is going to stun all of you,” he said.

But for the Conservative Party, desperate times call for desperate measures.

And given what has happened in British politics over the past decade, nothing can be ruled out completely.

With inputs from agencies