Former UK Foreign Minister Boris Johnson further solidified his place as far and away favorite to be the next Conservative Leader and Prime Minister. In the last round of leadership vote on Thursday, Johnson got 126 votes, nearly three times of runner-up, current Foreign Minister, Jeremy Hunt’s 46. Environment Secretary Michael Gove was third with 41 votes, and International Development Secretary Rory Stewart was fourth with 37, Home Secretary Sajid Javid had 33. Dominic Raab, with 30 votes, was knocked out. More votes are scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.
In a televised debate yesterday, Johnson pledged that “we must come out on the 31 Oct. because, otherwise I am afraid we face a catastrophic loss in politics”. And, “unless we do it, unless we get out on Oct. 31 I think we will all start to pay a really serious price.”