Penny Mordaunt’s team seemed as surprised as anyone that she had overhauled Liz Truss to come second in the first round of voting to be the UK’s next prime minister – but after she consolidated her position on Thursday, they now believe she could go all the way.
With the policy debate depressingly narrow – tax cuts now v tax cuts soon – MPs are assessing candidates on their election-fighting credentials. That means style as well as substance; and here, Mordaunt seems to have captured something that appeals to Tory MPs’ current mood.
