Penny Mordaunt and Grant Shapps lose seats as Tories face ‘electoral armageddon’

Penny Mordaunt and Grant Shapps, two prominent members of the Conservative party, suffered a major defeat in what has been a disastrous night for the party. This election is poised to be the party's worst ever result.

Shapps, who is in charge of the military, was one of four government officials who were announced to have not won their positions by Friday morning. Alex Chalk, the person in charge of the legal system, and Gillian Keegan, the head of education, were also among those who lost their roles.

Then, around 4:05am, Mordaunt was defeated in her bid to keep her seat in Portsmouth North. The leader of the House of Commons fell short by 780 votes compared to her Labour opponent.

Others were predicted to do the same, including Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, who was projected to be one of the most notable figures to lose their seat. The exit poll conducted by Ipsos Mori indicated that the party was on track to win 131 seats, the lowest amount since its establishment.

Shapps criticized the disagreements within the Conservative party in his speech after losing the election. He pointed fingers at his fellow party members for alienating voters nationwide. He expressed frustration at how the party's internal conflicts have turned into a never-ending drama, causing traditional Conservative supporters to lose patience. These divisions have only gotten worse and more self-absorbed over time.

He gave a caution to his party, who will probably soon start a possibly divisive competition for leadership. He warned that there is a risk they could start focusing on criticizing themselves and not effectively holding the government accountable, leading to a period of weak opposition. He emphasized the importance of preventing this from occurring.

Shapps wasn't the only candidate who lost the election and cautioned against the party moving towards the right to try and win back Reform voters, which could potentially cause division.

In his concession speech, former justice secretary Robert Buckland warned that making such a decision would be a catastrophic error that could lead us into turmoil and result in Labour holding power for a long time.

He criticized potential Tory leaders, saying on the BBC: “I have seen fellow members of the Conservative party take stances, write controversial opinion pieces, and make foolish statements without any proof, instead of focusing on their responsibilities. I am tired of individual motivations and competing for power.”

He said: "The Conservatives are heading towards a massive defeat in the elections. It's going to be like a situation where a bunch of bald men are fighting over a comb."

Other high-ranking officials believed that the Conservatives needed to win back the middle. The ex-finance minister George Osborne stated that partnering with Reform would be a "terrible direction to take".

He said: "If the exit poll is accurate, there will be discussions and debates within the Conservative party about the possibility of merging with Reform, which could potentially lead to the return of Reform MPs. I believe this would not be a good move for the Tories, but it will definitely be a topic of conversation."

Jo Johnson, a member of the Conservative party and Minister for Universities, stated in an interview with the BBC that it was a wrong decision for the Conservatives to try to be seen as only making slight reforms. He also expressed concern that the party could potentially lose support in the country's capital.

He stated: "This greatly criticizes their ability to attract progressive, open-minded voters in big cities... What prospects does a party have if they neglect our major metropolitan areas?"

On the other hand, some people suggested that the party should adopt a more conservative approach in order to win back center-right voters who switched to Reform.

Ex-business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg mentioned that the Conservative party neglected their key supporters and believed it was a mistake for Tory MPs to remove Boris Johnson after he was chosen by the people. Rees-Mogg stated on the BBC that not sticking to the fundamental beliefs of the Conservative party caused significant damage.

In response to a question about whether the Conservative Party should have considered teaming up with Nigel Farage, Rees-Mogg expressed uncertainty. He mentioned that it doesn't seem like the disaster has been avoided. Rees-Mogg suggested that Nigel Farage may be looking to bring together various right-wing groups in British politics, and it will be intriguing to see if he is successful in doing so.

Andrea Leadsom, who used to be a leadership candidate for the Conservative party and is now a health minister, stated that the Tories made a mistake by not putting up a stronger fight against Reform UK. She mentioned that Reform UK was expected to win 13 seats and come in second in many areas. Leadsom suggested that maybe the issue is that the Conservatives have not been sticking to their conservative values enough.

Some members of the Conservative Party have been rumored to be getting ready to run for leadership positions in private. These individuals include Kemi Badenoch, who serves as the business secretary, Suella Braverman, the previous home secretary, and Robert Jenrick, the past immigration minister.

Ex-defense minister James Heappey expressed his belief that the final number of Tory seats by Friday morning would be less than 131. He stated on GB News that this was a significant disapproval of the government's actions over the past five years led by Brandon Lewis and their colleagues.