Michael Fabricant MP. Photo: PA
Boris Johnson dramatically pulled out of the race for 10 Downing Street last night after admitting he cannot unite the warring Conservative Party.
The former prime minister said he had “reached out” to leadership rivals Rishi Sunak and Penny Mordaunt to see if they could work together in the national interest, but it had not proved possible.
In a statement, he insisted he had secured the 100 nominations needed to get onto the ballot paper – and that if he stood there was a “very good chance” he would be back in Downing Street by the end of the week.
But several people have questioned whether that was true, with Henry Hill, the deputy editor of Conservative Home, questioning why more MPs chose not to publicly declare their support:
It also seems like a few of Johnson’s old guard got the wrong end of the stick as the battle to replace Liz Truss heated up.
Michael Fabricant said there will “NOT be a coronation” tomorrow, tweeting that Johnson “WILL go to the membership”.
He then hilariously threw his weight behind Penny Mordaunt with this tweet:
The flip-flopping social media posts have been widely lampooned on social media.
Here’s a pick of what people had to say:
Related: Sunak to be declared PM ‘within hours’ as Johnson exits and Mordaunt flounders
