Voting closes in contest to lead UK Conservative Party as it seeks to rebound from defeat

Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — Voting has closed in contest to lead Britain’s Conservative Party after its crushing election defeat. The result is due to be announced on Saturday. Tens of thousands of members of the right-of-center party were eligible to vote in the runoff between lawmakers Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick. Jenrick is a former moderate who has become more sharply nationalist and wants a hardline approach to immigration. Badenoch argues for a low-tax, free-market economy and pledging to “rewire, reboot and reprogram” the British state. She would be the first Black woman to lead a major British political party. The party is choosing a leader to replace former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who led the Conservatives to their worst election result since 1832 in July.