Boris Johnson's political future has been thrown into jeopardy once again after the Tories lost two crunch by-elections and the PM's party chairman dramatically quit.
Oliver Dowden, a long-standing ally of the Prime Minister's and the MP appointed to get the Tories ready for a general election, resigned "with immediate effect" in the early hours of Friday, after the Tories lost Red Wall northern seat Wakefield to Labour and true blue West Country seat Tiverton and Honiton to the Lib Dems.
The electoral catastrophe will undoubtedly spark fresh calls for the Prime Minister to stand down, after he narrowly survived a motion of no confidence earlier this month over the Partygate scandal.
The outgoing chairman's wrote to the Prime Minister saying the "parliamentary by-elections are the latest in a run of very poor results for our party".
But his pointed letter had more than one coded message for the beleaguered premier and Tory MPs. Here's what he said and what he really meant.
What he said: "We cannot carry on with business as usual. Somebody must take responsibility and I have concluded that, in these circumstances, it would not be right for me to remain in office."
What he meant: This is a signal that he believes Boris Johnson's "business as usual" - which many feel has consisted of regular Tory sleaze scandals, continued questions about the PM's personal conduct and a lack of direction - is no longer acceptable.
By resigning himself and underlining "somebody must take responsibility", he is perhaps nudging fellow Cabinet ministers to follow suit and warning the PM to reflect on whether he should stay.
What he said: "In particular, I want to take this opportunity to pay tribute to our excellent Conservative volunteers and staffers who work so tirelessly for our cause. They are the backbone of our party and deserve better than this."
What he meant: As party chairman, Mr Dowden's position has been to rally the Conservatives' rank and file, as well as represent them in Government.
By bluntly telling the Prime Minister that the party membership "deserve better than this", he is voicing the anger they have felt not just at losing the two by-elections but a disastrous set of local elections in May in which the Tories lost hundreds of council seats and power in the totemic London boroughs of Wandsworth, Barnet and Westminster.
What he said: "Finally I want to emphasise that this is a deeply personal decision that I have taken alone. I will, as always, remain loyal to the Conservative Party."
What he meant: Arguably, the biggest red flag for the PM, Mr Dowden signs off by saying he will "remain loyal to the Conservative Party".
Whenever a Cabinet minister resigns, they normally make clear they will support the Prime Minister from the backbenches. In making the distinction that his allegiance lies with the wider Conservative Party, Mr Dowden also reveals to the PM - and his former frontbench colleagues - that he is not pledging support for him personally.
