Kemi Badenoch knocked out of Tory leadership race

Kemi Badenoch has been knocked out of Tory leadership race.

The politician with Nigerian ancestry failed to advance to the next voting stage after MPs held the fourth ballot to decide the next Tory Leader on Tuesday.

Three other contenders, former Chancellor Rishi Sunak, Penny Mordaunt, and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, will move to another vote which will take place on Wednesday.

According to the results announced by the Conservatives’ 1922 Committee, Sunak had secured the most votes among MPs with 118 backers, followed by Mordaunt with 92 votes. Truss secured 86 votes, while Badenoch got 59 votes.

Reacting to the development, Badenoch thanked his colleagues and party members who supported her bid.

“This campaign began less than two weeks ago. What we’ve achieved demonstrates the level of support for our vision of change for our country and for the Conservative Party. Thank you,” she tweeted.

The 42-year-old was one of the many government officials who resigned from the Boris Johnson administration.

The former Equalities Minister had announced her decision to contest the party leadership in an article for The Times.