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Priti Patel joins race to lead UK conservative party
Sunak will stay on as acting leader until a new one is chosen.
Priti Patel becomes the fifth candidate to announce her leadership bid. / Image - X/ pritipatel
Priti Patel, former Interior Minister of the UK, has announced her intention to run for the leader of the Conservative Party, replacing Rishi Sunak, who resigned after the party's worst election performance earlier this month.
Patel, 52, is the fifth candidate to enter the race. She launched her campaign with the slogan "Unite to Win," which advocates for unity within the party.
"It isn’t our heroic members who failed, but politicians’ distraction from public service. It is time to put unity before personal vendetta, country before party, and delivery before self-interest. We must now turn our Conservative values into strong policies to bring about positive change for people across our country,” BBC quoted her as saying.
“I can lead us in opposition and unite our party and get us match fit for the next election, with unity, experience and strength,” Patel wrote announcing her candidacy on social media platform X.
I am standing to be the new Leader of the Conservative Party.
— Priti Patel MP (@pritipatel) July 27, 2024
We must Unite to Win!
I can lead us in opposition and unite our party and get us match fit for the next election, with unity, experience and strength. #UnitewithPriti #UnitetoWinhttps://t.co/40VhD95mj3
Patel resigned as International Development Minister in 2017 over undisclosed meetings with Israeli officials but returned to government in 2019 as Interior Minister under Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Patel, a former home secretary, underscores her "critical role" in bolstering the country's defenses against terrorist threats, enforcing more stringent criminal sentences, combating people-smuggling gangs, and enhancing the police presence.
UK-born Patel, whose parents are of Gujarati descent, was awarded a Damehood in Johnson's resignation honours list, subsequently moving to the backbenches during Sunak’s tenure, where she often criticized his government's high taxation policies.
Additionally, she served as Indian Diaspora Champion in David Cameron’s government and recently took her oath as a re-elected MP for Witham in Essex in the House of Commons.
The other candidates for the race are former security minister Tom Tugendhat, former foreign minister James Cleverly, former work and pensions minister Mel Stride, and former immigration minister Robert Jenrick.
The candidates for the first round of the Conservative leadership election have been confirmed pic.twitter.com/dhug20uG6f
— Conservatives (@Conservatives) July 29, 2024
Lawmakers will first narrow the field to four candidates who will present their case at the Conservative Party conference in late September. The final two will be chosen by a vote of all party members, with the new leader announced on Nov 2.
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