Tory leadership race: James Cleverly knocked out - leaving Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenoch in final two

[IwantToRetire]

There is shock and surprise after the former foreign secretary, who catapulted ahead after Tory conference, is eliminated from the contest.

Tory MPs held a final vote on Wednesday to reduce the field to a final two, who will then go to a ballot of Conservative members.

After picking up 42 votes in the final round of voting, Ms Badenoch re-established herself as the favourite after lagging behind in previous rounds.

Robert Jenrick, her close rival on the right, picked up one vote shy of Ms Badenoch, while Mr Cleverly - who was seen as a unifying candidate - won the backing of 37 MPs.

More at https://news.sky.com/story/tory-leadership-race-james-cleverly-knocked-out-leaving-robert-jenrick-and-kemi-badenoch-as-final-two-facing-party-membership-vote-13230871

I was being a tiny bit sarcastic, because in relation to children / young people, you will endlessly hear on the MSM that young people today have it harder than any other generation of young people.

Not having to go down coal mines or up chimneys
Not being conscripted into the armed forces
Not being made to serve 5 years (or longer) apprenticeships
Not leaving school at 15 and expected to start work
Not coming of age until you are 21
Not having paid holidays let alone in another country
Not having your baby taken away from you because you are an unwed mother
Not being prosecuted for having an abortion

You have to ask who is making these children / young people feel so inadequate that they cant cope. Or is it that they are being fed a false idea of what life is actually like as opposed to on screen fantasies.

I think life has got easier, overall, for children of every generation since the 19th century.

I certainly think the inherent stressors aren't greater, in terms of war, possible destruction of everything, etc. People in the past, recent and long ago, had all of these things.

I do think that actually leaving school at 15 to work and apprenticeships might have been a lot better for quite a few children. Leaving them dependant up into their teens and even 20s, I suspect is bad for mental health. Maybe even very bad.

Tory MP says Badenoch too ‘preoccupied with her children’ to lead party
“Much as I like Kemi, I think she’s preoccupied with her own children, quite understandably. I think Robert’s children are a bit older, and I think that it’s important that whoever leads the opposition has got an immense amount of time and energy.”
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/oct/17/tory-mp-says-badenoch-too-preoccupied-with-her-children-to-lead-party

Badenoch hits back at Tory MP who said she's 'too preoccupied' with her children to be party leader
Mother-of-three Ms Badenoch's youngest child is five and her eldest is 12, while Mr Jenrick also has three children between the ages of eight and 13.
https://news.sky.com/story/badenoch-hits-back-at-tory-mp-who-said-shes-too-preoccupied-with-her-children-to-be-party-leader-13235266

Christopher Chope MP is a nasty misogynist and has made a name for himself in the Tory party as a man who can be trusted to oppose women and women's rights.

I'm no fan of Badenoch, but Chope's opposition to her leadership bid stems from his misogyny.

Good to see Jenrick recognises that he doesn't need that kind of support. This is a good response on his behalf:

A spokesperson for Jenrick also disowned Chope’s comments, saying: “Rob doesn’t agree with this. He’s raising three young daughters himself.”

Yes, he's raising daughters - and they are all still young. Far too often the raising bit is only attached to the woman and the woman's career in the language that people use. Like Chope 😡 His pathetic justification that the relative ages of the children is what makes a difference just adds more weight to the idea that he probably thinks women's careers are a hobby to fit in where possible while the husbands do the real work - the ages of all the children are near enough the same when it comes to what they would need from their parents.

The BBC has a direct quote from Jenrick too:

Speaking during the same TV event, Jenrick said Chope was "definitely wrong".
"Kemi and I both have three children. She's a great mum, I'd like to think I'm a good dad. We will both be able to balance this, whoever leads our party forward," he added.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c62dke21y24o

I think Kemi Badenoch tells the truth about things and people react badly to it. We are so accustomed to politicians being evasive weasels that people are outraged by public truth telling. After all some people gasp with horror when people refuse to 'be kind' and say transwomen are men.

So KB would be a bad leader because she's a childless cat lady. Oh wait, no, wrong side of the Atlantic - she's a catless child lady. Or she's too preoccupied with her cats. Of which she has too many. Or was that children?

Too many children, not enough children, cats not children - it all boils down to just one thing: A WOMAN'S PLACE IS IN THE WRONG😡 .

Good, that was a decent response

To add, a hopefully normal modern response but still, a moment where competing politicians say something in support

Well yes, obviusly!

But it is such an overt reminder that any notion that women's liberation or feminism has in any way changed underlying patriarchal attitudes, just hasn't happened.

He said this not only because he believes it, but because he also believes other people think like him.

And people voted him in as an MP.

Should have included:

Not being sectioned or chemically castrated for being same sex attracted
Not being shut away in an institution and lobotomised for being a female who didn't conform

I would hate to think that in fact today's young people would be less stressed if in fact they would be happier living in more restricted times, with behaviour and values mapped out for them, rather than the "stress" of apparently having any number of options.

(I've added apparently as being able to act on choice is in fact usually only open to those with existing privileges.)