Penny Mordaunt has been knocked out of the run for the Conservative leadership.
This will leave Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss to battle for support among the Tory party grassroots over the coming weeks.
The 1922 committee announced this afternoon that of all 357 MP votes cast there were 2 spoiled ballots.
International trade minister Penny Mordaunt came in third with 105 votes.
Former chancellor Rishi Sunak came first with 137.
Foreign secretary Liz Truss was runner-up with 113 votes.
Truss tweeted in the wake of the result: “‘m ready to hit the ground. Thank you for putting your trust in me. I’m ready to hit the ground from day one.”
Penny Mordaunt also quickly reacted on the social media site, writing: “Thanks to everyone for all your hard work. We go forward together.”
“I pay tribute to anyone who puts themselves forward for such a demanding role. Politics isn’t easy. ‘It can be a divisive and difficult place. We must all now work together to unify our party and focus on the job.”
Current polling suggests that Truss will beat Sunak in the forthcoming membership ballot.
A YouGov poll released on Tuesday found that Truss beat Sunak 53 per cent to 35 per cent following two televised debates.
A ConHome poll of Tory members, released on Sunday, found that Truss would beat Sunak, gaining 49 per cent of members votes to the ex-chancellor’s 42.
More to follow
