Pro-Brexit candidate wins key support in party race
LONDON — Boris Johnson solidified his front-runner status in the race to become Britain’s next prime minister on Tuesday, gaining backing from leading pro-Brexit lawmakers.
But he faced calls from his rivals to abandon his low-profile campaign strategy and start answering questions from journalists and the public.
Ten candidates are running to succeed Theresa May, who stepped down last week as Conservative Party leader.
Johnson, 54, has won the backing of many Brexiteer Conservatives by promising to lead Britain out of the European Union by Oct. 31, with or without a divorce deal.
Brexit-backing exparty leader Iain Duncan Smith wrote in Tuesday’s Daily Telegraph that Johnson “is the most likely to deliver on the requirement to leave the EU” by that date.
Johnson has also been endorsed by some proEU Tories who think the flamboyant, tousle-haired ex-foreign secretary has the skills to energize a demoralized party and win back voters angry at the mess politicians have made of Brexit.
In a straw poll among a right-of-center bloc of Tory lawmakers on Monday, Johnson received almost double the votes of his nearest rival.
Most have given television and radio interviews and held public launch events — things Johnson has so far avoided, in an attempt to reduce the chance of gaffes that could derail his campaign. He also has not said whether he will participate in planned televised debates among leadership candidates.
The right-leaning Daily Mail newspaper said in an editorial that “if he wants to win, this bunker mentality is simply not good enough. Even though he’s the favorite, he can’t just sit back and hope to win by default.”
May resigned as Conservative leader last week after failing three times to secure Parliament’s backing for her Brexit deal.