UK Conservatives agree to rule change to limit number of leadership candidates

The United Kingdom’s Conservative Party on Tuesday agreed on new set of rules to limit the number of leadership candidates from their party.

Michael Fabricant, a member of Parliament, explained the changes in a series of tweets.

Candidates will need to win 5 percent of votes, or support from 16 Tory members, in the first ballot and 10 percent, or 32 members, in the second in order to progress. 

Once just two candidates remain, the whole Conservative Party will pick a new leader.

BREAKING: The 1922 Committee of the Conservative Party has agreed a change to the rules whereby the large numbers of leadership candidates will be whittled down quickly. Talk of 16 votes or more needed for a candidate to stay in the 1st round and 32 votes in the 2nd. 1of2

— Michael Fabricant (@Mike_Fabricant) June 4, 2019 

.2of2 Once the final two have been chosen by Conservative MPs, the final choice will be made by all the members of the Conservative Party.
It is hoped the final 2 will be chosen by the end of next week and a new PM will be in place by the end of July at the latest.

— Michael Fabricant (@Mike_Fabricant) June 4, 2019

British Prime Minister Theresa May announced her resignation last month over her failure to secure a Brexit deal, necessitating the election of a new conservative leader. 

{mosadS}She is set to resign as the head of the Tory Party on Friday, but will remain prime minister until her successor is appointed.

There are 11 candidates jostling for the position.

The rule change comes during President Trump’s state visit to the U.K.

Trump had said prior to the trip that he might meet with ex-foreign secretary Boris Johnson, one of the front-runners for the position, while he is in the country.

The two spoke on the phone Tuesday, and Johnson reportedly told Trump he could not see the president because of a previous commitment.