Ten Candidates In Race To Succeed Johnson
Ten Conservative MPs have so far said they intend to run in the contest to replace Boris Johnson, who recently announced he would step down as Party Leader after facing mounting criticism from his party,
The field of contenders includes Rishi Sunak, Nadhim Zahawi, Grant Shapps, Suella Braverman, Kemi Badenoch, Tom Tugendhat, Sajid Javid, Jeremy Hunt, Penny Mordaunt and Liz Truss.
Bermuda is a self-governing British Overseas Territory and generally speaking, handles most matters internally, however the UK does maintain some involvement, for example, right now they are assessing the Cannabis Bill and deciding whether to provide assent.
Over the years, some British Parliamentarians have pushed for additional involvement, such as the recent Private Members Bill from Lord Cashman, a member of the Labour party, seeking to legalize same sex marriage in the Territories.
Tom Tugendhat is Chair of the British Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee which has suggested more involvement, they released a report back in 2019 which suggested the UK Government should “should intervene through legislation” to legalize same sex marriage in all the Overseas Territories. The report also suggested that British citizens be given the right to vote in the Overseas Territories, with the suggestion of British citizens voting in Bermuda resulting in bi-partisan pushback, with both the PLP and OBA stating they object to the idea.
Following that report, the British Government, in effect, declined to action both suggestions, saying they “have no plans to introduce an Order-in-Council” on same sex marriage the Territories. and do not plan to “publish such a timetable” to allow UK citizens to vote in OTs.
As far as how they choose a new leader, the Guardian explains, “To take part in the race, a Tory MP has to be nominated by eight colleagues. Once all the candidates have declared, Tory MPs will hold a series of votes until only two remain. In the first round, candidates must get 5% of the votes to stay in the running, which is 18 votes.
“In the second round they must get 10%, which is currently 36 MPs. In the following rounds, the candidate with the least number of votes is eliminated until two candidates remain. When two MPs are left in the race, party members get to make their final choice before a deadline set by the 1922 Committee.”
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