The five contenders battling to be the next Tory leader

Five candidates are successful the moving to instrumentality implicit from Rishi Sunak arsenic person of the Conservative Party.

Dame Priti Patel earlier became the archetypal would-be person to beryllium knocked retired of the contest successful a ballot of Tory MPs.

The MPs volition adjacent week whittle down the remaining candidates from 5 to four, who volition past marque their transportation to members astatine the party's league successful Birmingham.

In a bid of further ballots, the MPs volition past constrictive the tract to a last 2 contenders, with enactment members past choosing the winner.

Born successful London and raised successful Nigeria, Olukemi Olufunto Adegoke became the Tory MP for Saffron Walden successful 2017 nether her joined sanction Badenoch.

Known for her robust views and no-nonsense style, her governmental heroine increasing up successful Nigeria was Margaret Thatcher, according to Blue Ambition, a caller biography by Tory adjacent Lord Ashcroft.

She returned to the UK astatine the property of 16 to survey for her A-levels earlier gaining a masters grade successful machine systems engineering from Sussex University.

She became much Conservative partially arsenic "a absorption to the precise spoiled, entitled, privileged, metropolitan elite-in-training astatine university," she told a Spectator podcast.

Before entering politics, the 44-year-old parent of 3 worked successful banking and IT.

She held a bid of ministerial jobs nether Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, who promoted her to concern secretary.

But it is arguably done her different erstwhile relation - arsenic curate for women and equalities - that she has emerged arsenic a darling of the modern Conservative close for her stance connected trans rights.

She regularly tops polls of Tory members carried retired by the website Conservative Home.

She archetypal ran for Conservative person successful 2022 pursuing the resignation of Boris Johnson and came 4th contempt starting the contention with a comparatively low-profile.

Launching her latest bid, she said the Conservative Party needed to "stop acting similar Labour" to triumph backmost power.

Seen arsenic being connected the "moderate" helping of the Conservative Party, James Cleverly has been an MP since 2015, rising to go overseas caput and past location secretary.

Born and raised successful southbound London, to an English begetter and Sierra Leonean mother, who worked arsenic an NHS midwife, helium was privately educated, contempt the family's humble means, and joined the Army consecutive aft school.

His afloat clip soldiering vocation was chopped abbreviated by a limb wounded but helium remains an serviceman successful the Army reserves.

Like his enactment rival, Ms Badenoch, the 55-year-old father-of-two chopped his governmental teeth arsenic a subordinate of the London Assembly.

Before entering politics, helium had a vocation successful mag and integer publishing, earlier mounting up his ain company.

A sociable figure, who enjoys a joke, he got into blistery h2o past twelvemonth for allegedly making a derogatory remark astir Stockton-on-Tees successful the Commons (something helium denied).

He also had to apologise for joking astir spiking his wife's drink astatine a Downing Street reception.

He erstwhile told the Huffington Post his biggest responsibility was: “I speech excessively overmuch and sometimes I talk a spot excessively frankly, which I deliberation radical similar until they don’t similar it.”

He spoken of his tendency to "unite" the Conservatives and has urged the enactment to "think and enactment similar Conservatives again".

He is besides a robust defender of the erstwhile government's argumentation of sending immoderate asylum seekers to Rwanda, and has said he would bring it backmost if helium becomes premier minister.

Robert Jenrick, 42, has reinvented himself arsenic a close winger aft starting his governmental travel arsenic a much centrist fig and a adjacent state of erstwhile PM Rishi Sunak.

Last twelvemonth helium resigned his relation arsenic migration minister, saying Mr Sunak's exigency Rwanda authorities did not spell acold enough.

And helium has since been outspoken astir what helium sees arsenic his party's nonaccomplishment to present connected its promises to chopped migration erstwhile it was successful power.

In particular, helium has led calls for the UK to retreat from the European Convention connected Human Rights.

This helped to him to pull enactment from MPs antecedently loyal to his erstwhile brag astatine the Home Office, Suella Braverman, who ruled herself retired of the enactment contention earlier it began.

The 42-year-old begetter of 3 was a firm lawyer - and a manager of auction location Christie's - earlier entering authorities arsenic the MP for Newark successful 2014.

His Tory enactment pitch is that the enactment needs to face hard truths - and lone helium tin marque the changes needed to triumph the adjacent election.

In 2020, helium was embroiled successful contention implicit his determination arsenic lodging caput to assistance planning support for a lodging improvement successful eastbound London linked to a Tory donor.

In 2023, helium made headlines again for ordering that murals of cartoon characters astatine a reception centre for kid asylum seekers successful Dover beryllium painted over.

More recently, helium admitted utilizing the value nonaccomplishment cause Ozempic but said helium "didn't peculiarly bask it" and went connected to suffer value by much accepted means.

Perhaps the slightest well-known of the 5 contenders among the wide public, Mel Stride has softly built up a enactment basal among Tory MPs.

A adjacent state of Rishi Sunak, the 62-year-old was 1 of a fistful of ministers trusted to bash media interviews during the wide predetermination campaign.

A grammar schoolhouse lad from Portsmouth, helium followed the well-trodden way of a grade successful Politics, Philosophy and Economics astatine Oxford University, wherever helium was elected president of the Union, to the precocious echelons of the Conservative Party.

The father-of-three acceptable up Venture Marketing Group, a institution that organises commercialized shows and exhibitions, earlier becoming an MP successful 2010.

After narrowly holding connected to his Central Devon spot by 61 votes astatine the election, Mr Stride said his enactment needed to "think agelong and deeply" astir its mediocre show earlier it could go the "natural enactment of government" again

Launching his enactment bid, helium said his enactment needed to "build spot with the electorate again".

Mr Stride is presently shadiness enactment and pensions caput and has cited his roles arsenic Treasury Select Committee seat and Commons person arsenic impervious of his quality to bid "respect" crossed the party.

A erstwhile serviceman successful the Territorial Army, who served successful Iraq and Afghanistan, Tom Tugendhat is mostly seen arsenic being a centrist.

But the shadiness information curate has sought to boost his credentials with close helping MPs by taking a hard enactment connected immigration.

At his enactment run launch, helium pledged to headdress the UK's nett migration astatine 1000,000 a twelvemonth and did not regularisation retired leaving the European Convention connected Human Rights if helium wins power.

The 51-year-old antecedently mislaid a enactment contention against Liz Truss, during which helium pitched himself arsenic offering a "fresh start" and to "bridge the Brexit divide".

This time, helium has pledged to "make the Conservative Party a superior unit again", and has made a constituent of apologizing for the behaviour of his enactment erstwhile it was successful government.

The lad of a precocious tribunal judge, who was educated astatine apical backstage schoolhouse St Paul's earlier studying theology astatine Bristol University, helium became the MP for Tonbridge astatine the 2015 wide election.

A begetter of two, helium voted Remain successful the 2016 Brexit referendum. He was highly captious of the Nato withdrawal from Afghanistan successful August 2021.