Cameron announced his resignation after unsuccessfully campaigning for Britain to vote “remain” in the June 23 referendum that asked voters whether the United Kingdom should stay in the European Union.
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Members of Parliament are choosing among three legislators – Home Secretary Theresa May, Justice Secretary Michael Gove and Energy Minister Andrew Leadsom.
The text said: “I am seriously frightened about the risk of allowing Andrea Leadsom onto the membership ballot”.
It means the Conservative Party will give the country a female Prime Minister twice, with the victor of the current contest following in the footsteps of Margaret Thatcher.
She said she was delighted to have won support from “leavers and remainers, MPs from the length and breadth of the country”.
Speaking to supporters outside the House of Commons, May said: “This vote shows the Conservative Party can come together and under my leadership it will”.
Gove said that he was “naturally disappointed” by the result.
“Whoever the next prime minister of this country will be, it will be a female prime minister, and a female prime minister who has formidable skills. And I know whichever one of the two wins, they will lead this country well”.
Justice Secretary Michael Gove was eliminated in Thursday’s vote by Conservative members of Parliament.
May supported Britain remaining in the European Union, but has pledged to hold up the Brexit vote. He will step down in October.
May, 59, who supported staying in the European Union, emerged as the favorite for leader in the first round of voting Tuesday by the party’s lawmakers.
The Conservative Party’s 150,000 members will now decide the victor of the final run-off, with the new leader due to be announced on September 9.
The party has promised to complete the election, which has a final stage of postal voting, by September 9.
David Cameron, the Conservative prime minister, campaigned to stay in the EU.
“I think the country requires fresh leadership to take it in this direction”, Cameron said upon resigning. Unlike Leadsom, she supported Britain staying in the European Union, prompting some hopes that she might find a more sympathetic reception in Brussels during withdrawal talks and that she might take a softer stance to what Britain’s relationship to the European Union will look like post-Brexit.
Leadsom, 53, argues that the prime minister should be someone who truly believes in a British exit, or Brexit. Another person who works at Barclays said he couldn’t find anyone who remembered working with her.
Veteran Conservative politician Ken Clarke was caught on camera in the British media describing May as a “bloody hard woman”, though he appeared not to actually oppose her candidacy.
Leadsom, in a 12-minute “major speech on the economy” on Thursday, appealed to people and the markets to take a more optimistic view of Brexit.
Mr Stephens claimed he prompted her into editing her Wikipedia page to change the title Chief Investment Officer to Senior Investment Officer and Head of Corporate Governance which was her actual job at the company.
She said Thursday, “No one needs to fear our decision to leave the European Union”.
Leadsom entered Parliament in 2010 following a career in the financial sector.
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It is clear Mrs May has a big advantage among Tories at Westminster and has more ministerial experience than her rival.
