Penny Mordaunt may emerge as the unifying candidate to replace Liz Truss if she resigns as prime minister or is forced out, with “Red Wall” MPs regarding her as the best person to help them keep their seats.
While the Conservatives remain sharply divided over who should become its next leader, MPs and party figures have told The National that they believe Ms Mordaunt is emerging as the candidate most would pick in a quick leadership contest.
The potential for events to move rapidly increased late on Tuesday evening after two MPs were elected on to vacant positions on the 1922 Committee, the group of Conservative backbenchers who oversee party matters.
With northern MPs Eddie Hughes and Karl McCartney elected, the powerful committee will probably re-examine the rules to allow a confidence vote in Ms Truss, which it appears she would lose.
It has also emerged that she considered resigning on Monday night after a difficult House of Commons appearance in which she was criticised for avoiding an urgent question while Ms Mordaunt, 49, competently covered for her absence.
Ms Truss only appeared shortly before the session ended.
It is thought that she is remaining in post while key party figures discuss who would be the best person to replace her and face the difficult task of winning the next general election.
The party does not want a repeat of the gruelling leadership campaign in the summer, when Conservative Party members decided the winner after MPs selected the two final candidates, Ms Truss and former chancellor Rishi Sunak.
Instead, MPs want a “coronation” in which a unity candidate is largely agreed on before a vote takes place.
That will mean that Britain’s next leader — its fifth in the past six years — is decided by the 357 Conservative MPs.
While a poll on Tuesday showed that the Conservative Party's 166,000 members would prefer Boris Johnson as their next leader, followed by Rishi Sunak and then Ben Wallace, the Defence Secretary, MPs are understood to be gathering behind Ms Mordaunt.
The Leader of House has already been praised for a well-regarded Commons’ performance last week and for her deft handling on Monday during Ms Truss’s absence.
“Why should it be Penny?” a Conservative source said. “She is genuinely liked among the parliamentary party, she is an amazing performer and gives the feeling of being in control.”
The source said that as a Brexiteer, Ms Mordaunt would make a good “double act” with Mr Hunt, a “Remainer”, and would appeal to former Labour voters in England's “Red Wall” northern seats.
“Red Wall MPs are also pushing for her because they want to keep their seats and they know that Rishi looks too elite and too rich,” the source said.
“Penny is good-looking, funny, and someone who voters up north could have a pie and pint and laugh with.”
While Mr Sunak is marked as the current favourite to become next prime minister, he is held in disdain by some colleagues for his apparent treachery in resigning as chancellor in July and helping to force out Mr Johnson.
“Rishi is too associated with Boris’s scandals of Partygate and they are terrified of the past even though Rishi was absolutely right on Liz and the economy,” a backbench MP said.
And with the well-regarded Jeremy Hunt now in place as Chancellor and having steadied the markets, they question whether Mr Sunak is needed.
“Hunt obviates the need for Rishi, so his USP melts away a bit. People want the markets to calm down and Hunt very much gives the impression of someone in control, so there is no vacancy for Chancellor.
“Rishi is also associated with Covid during a hard time of grieving, so when people see him on TV they will say, ‘I remember him from the pandemic’.”
An MP who has known Ms Mordaunt since she entered the House of Commons in 2010 called her a “kind, decent person”.
“She has integrity, charisma and humour, and MPs like someone that they can get behind,” the MP said.
“Penny is nice, in contrast to some who are really nasty and will hack anyone’s head off to get power.”
