Who is Rory Stewart and does he stand a chance against Boris Johnson?

The international development secretary’s attacks on chief rival in Tory leadership contest are little short of extraordinary

Rory Stewart
Rory Stewart launches his campaign to be Tory leader at the Udderbelly Festival on London’s Southbank
(Image credit: Leon Neal/Getty Images)

The immediate coverage of Thursday's first Conservative leadership ballot suggested there were two winners and eight losers.

Boris Johnson grabbed the headlines with his impressive tally of 114 votes, leaving his rivals scrambling. But the other winner was Rory Stewart, the international development secretary and widely seen as an also-ran, who booked his place in the second round of MPs’ votes. Stewart won 19 votes to finish in seventh place, despite most pundits predicting he would be eliminated. He pronounced himself “absolutely over the moon” and claimed he had momentum.

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