Brexit campaigner Boris Johnson advances on Britain's top job; 5 surviving candidates take part in TV debate
Updated 12:07, 19-Jun-2019
CGTN
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Brexit campaigner Boris Johnson advanced on the prize of Britain's top political job on Tuesday, winning 40 percent of votes in the second round of a contest to replace Prime Minister Theresa May. 

Johnson, the face of the official Brexit campaign in the 2016 referendum, won 126 out of 313 votes and so goes through to a third ballot with four other candidates who won 33 votes or more. 

Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt won 46 votes, Environment Secretary Michael Gove won 41, International Development Secretary Rory Stewart 37 and Home Secretary Sajid Javid 33. 

While Johnson won by far the most votes, he added just 12 from the first round. Stewart, 46, was the biggest gainer from the first round, adding 18 votes.

Dominic Raab delivers his speech outlining the government's plans for a no-deal Brexit in central London, August 23, 2018. /VCG Photo

Dominic Raab delivers his speech outlining the government's plans for a no-deal Brexit in central London, August 23, 2018. /VCG Photo

Dominic Raab, a former Brexit minister, was eliminated from the contest as he won just 30 votes. 

Once the list is whittled down to two candidates, a postal ballot of the wider Conservative Party membership nationwide will be held to pick a leader. A new prime minister should be chosen by the end of July.

The TV debate

Johnson said on Tuesday that Britain "must come out" of the European Union (EU) by the new October deadline, as he defended his runaway lead in the UK leadership race against his four remaining rivals in a TV debate. 

The former foreign minister kept his cool and made no evident stumbles after seeing his advantage grow in a second-round ballot held earlier the same day by lawmakers from the ruling Conservatives in the lower House of Commons.

(L-R) Boris Johnson, Jeremy Hunt, Michael Gove, Sajid Javid, and Rory Stewart participate in a Conservative Leadership televised debate in London, Britain, June 18, 2019. /VCG Photo

(L-R) Boris Johnson, Jeremy Hunt, Michael Gove, Sajid Javid, and Rory Stewart participate in a Conservative Leadership televised debate in London, Britain, June 18, 2019. /VCG Photo

Ducked out of a first televised debate on Sunday, Johnson cast himself as the one politician able to bring Britain successfully out of the EU and therefore deliver the Brexit which British voters called for three years ago. 

"We must come out on October 31 because otherwise I'm afraid we face a catastrophic loss of confidence in politics," said Johnson in the hour-long BBC television showdown. 

"I think the British people are thoroughly fed up." 

But neither he nor the other contenders raised their hands when asked to do so if they could "guarantee" that Brexit will happen by October 31.

The dark horse

Fewer still gave Rory Stewart a serious shot at winning when he pronounced himself ready to succeed Theresa May as Conservative party chief.

Rory Stewart arrives for a meeting at 10 Downing Street in Westminster, London, Britain, May 12, 2015. /VCG Photo

Rory Stewart arrives for a meeting at 10 Downing Street in Westminster, London, Britain, May 12, 2015. /VCG Photo

But he managed to channel charm and a bashful charisma into a Twitter campaign that caught fire and made him the against-all-odds story of the leadership campaign. 

Phone videos of him chatting to strangers about the complexities of Brexit were both amusing and fresh – and have won him unexpected levels of support. 

Stewart won 37 votes in the second ballot, which nearly doubled the 19 he earned in last week's first round vote. 

He is now vying with three others for a chance to get into a likely runoff next month against runaway favorite Johnson. 

"We seem to have almost doubled our vote again...more to come...#walkon," Stewart tweeted moments after the ballot.

(With input from Reuters, AFP)