British Secretary of State for Trade Penny Mordaunt joins the race to succeed Boris Johnson

MADRID, 10 Jul. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Secretary of State for Commerce of the United Kingdom, Penny Mordaunt, announced this Sunday her candidacy for the leadership of the Conservative Party and, by extension, for the succession of Boris Johnson as the hypothetical prime minister of the country, to thus become the ninth candidate in the race for the head of government.

"Our leadership has to change. It has to focus a little less on the leader and a lot more on the ship," Mordaunt announced through a video posted on his Twitter account. "I am Penny Mordaunt and I am ready to serve as the next leader of the Conservative Party", she has sentenced in front of the musical background of the traditional British anthem 'Jerusalem'.

In the video, Mordaunt pledges to uphold "British values ​​such as 'freedom, justice, courage and compassion' which 'must be upheld now more than ever'."

Mordaunt, 43, is a fervent supporter of Brexit and was one of the main faces of the Vote Leave campaign in favor of leaving the country from the European Union. She is also seen as a rejuvenating cog between the more traditional sector of the Conservative party and its new generations, relatively more open, as she demonstrated in her support of the transsexual community during her time as head of Equality.

"We must think of those who preceded us, and we must think of future generations," he stated in his presentation video.

The Secretary of State thus announces her candidacy hours after former Health Ministers Sajid Javid and Jeremy Hunt, Treasury Minister Nadhim Zahawi, and Transport Minister Grant Shapps did the same.

Attorney General Suella Braverman, former Treasury Secretary Rishi Sunak, former Equality Minister Kemi Badenoch and House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Tom Tugendhat have also declared their intention to succeed Johnson.

The environment of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Liz Truss, have ensured that she will also attend the race, according to the newspaper 'The Mail on Sunday'.

Instead, one of the favorites, Defense Minister Ben Wallace, confirmed this Saturday that he will not appear. "After careful consideration and discussion with colleagues and family, I have made the decision not to enter the Conservative Party leadership race," Wallace said in a message posted on his Twitter account. .