With lightning speed, Liz Truss dropped a characteristic clanger after being announced as one of the two Tories who will battle it out to be the new Prime Minister.
The gaffe-prone Foreign Secretary proclaimed within minutes of the result being declared that she would “hit the ground” in No10 – forgetting to add the word “running”.
The tweet suggesting she would crash rather than start at full speed sounded like a rare moment of honesty in a leadership campaign dogged by claims of dirty tricks.
Despite this and other blunders, Ms Truss is now the bookies’ favourite to win the contest. She is up against Rishi Sunak, the former Chancellor.
Ms Truss leapfrogged Penny Mordaunt today in the final round of voting by Conservative MPs.
Ms Mordaunt had been second in all the previous rounds, but was eliminated due to a late surge by Ms Truss, who had been in third place throughout the earlier ballots.
Tory members will decide which of the final two candidates will become the new leader. Ms Truss, who has spent much of her campaign channelling Margaret Thatcher, is the darling of the Conservative grassroots.
She and Mr Sunak – who both served in the Cabinet under Boris Johnson – will spend the summer trying to woo Tory members at hustings across the country.
The result is due to be announced on September 5 and the winner is scheduled to replace Mr Johnson in Downing Street the next day. Ms Truss is regarded as the “Stop Rishi” candidate by many Johnson loyalists.
They regard Mr Sunak as being responsible for triggering the Prime Minister’s downfall.
The PM hinted his support in his final Prime Minister’s Questions today when he took a swipe at the Treasury and urged his successor to “cut taxes and deregulate”.
Mr Johnson’s closest allies are backing Ms Truss, who has promised vast tax cuts if she takes over at No10. Mr Johnson, who was finally axed by his MPs after months of scandal, warned his successor about being stabbed in the back.
He said at PMQs : “Focus on the road ahead, but always remember to check the rear-view mirror.”
His predecessor, Theresa May, who he helped oust from power, sat hands folded while other Tories gave him a standing ovation at the end of PMQs. A few hours later, it was announced Mr Sunak had come top in the leadership ballot among Tory MPs.
He took 137 votes, with Ms Truss joining him in the final run-off after securing 113 votes – eight ahead of Ms Mordaunt on 105.
The Foreign Secretary gained 27 votes on the previous ballot, Mr Sunak added 19 while Ms Mordaunt only gained 13.
There are many claims of dark arts. Mr Sunak’s allies have been accused of encouraging supporters to vote tactically to ensure a run-off with Ms Truss.
Former cabinet minister David Davis, who backed Ms Mordaunt, said: “[Rishi Sunak] wants to fight Liz, because she’s the person who will lose the debate with him.”
He called it the “dirtiest campaign I’ve ever seen”. Mr Sunak and Ms Truss pulled out of a Sky News debate on Tuesday after the leadership contest descended into bitter infighting that Tory chiefs decided only benefited Labour.
But the pair are due to appear in a BBC debate on Monday at 9pm, ahead of one with Sky News.
Last night Ladbrokes had Ms Truss as 4/6 favourite to become Tory leader, with Mr Sunak at 5/4.
But Mr Sunak argued he is the only person who can beat Labour.
Despite having been Chancellor for over two years, he said: “We need to restore trust, rebuild the economy and reunite our country...
“Crucially, who is the best person to beat Keir Starmer at the next election? I believe I’m the only candidate who can do that.”
Ms Truss, whose tweet about “hitting the ground” was hastily deleted, got the phrase correct in a statement issued later. It said: “I am excited to make the case to the Conservative Party about my bold new economic plan that will cut taxes, grow our economy and unleash the potential of everyone in our United Kingdom.
“As Prime Minister I would hit the ground running from day one.”
There are about 190,000 Tory Party members which means the next Prime Minister will be chosen by about 0.3% of the population.
Labour MP Conor McGinn said: “The choice to be the next Tory leader is down to the two continuity candidates.
“ Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak are stooges of the Johnson administration whose fingerprints are all over the state the country finds itself in today.
“Both are desperately trying to distance themselves from the Tory record of the last 12 years.”
