On 11 July 2016, Theresa May became the leader of the Conservative Party uncontested, following the sudden withdrawal of her rival, Andrea Leadsom, from the leadership race.

The truncated contest meant May became prime minister just two days later, tasked with navigating the political fallout from the UK’s vote to leave the European Union (EU).

***

The 2016 referendum on Britain’s membership of the EU claimed David Cameron as its first political casualty on the morning of 24 June. Cameron, addressing the first time since the defeat of his Remain campaign, conceded that he could not “be the captain that steers our country to its next destination.”

The sudden, and somewhat unexpected vacancy, triggered the first Conservative leadership contest since 2005.

May, the home secretary and Remain-supporter, was among the first to put her name forward. Launching her campaign, May argued that “Brexit means Brexit” and vowed not to call an election before 2020.

Asked for her pitch, the home secretary stated: “I’m Theresa May and I’m the best person to be prime minister.”

The home secretary was not initially seen as the frontrunner, but the shock defenestration of Boris Johnson at the hands of his erstwhile Vote Leave ally, Michael Gove, cleared the field.

In a shock intervention, Gove stunned Westminster by declaring his own candidacy and rubbishing Johnson’s credentials as a possible prime minister. The justice secretary argued that “Boris cannot provide the leadership or build the team for the task ahead.”

In a statement, Gove declared: “I have repeatedly said that I do not want to be prime minister. That has always been my view. But events since last Thursday have weighed heavily with me.”

He suggested that Johnson, his fellow Vote Leave figurehead, could not lead Britain to a “better future”.

Johnson responded to Gove’s act of treachery by effectively withdrawing from the contest. The event intended as his campaign launch was instead repurposed to signal his decision to stand aside.

The former mayor of London told supporters: “I must tell you, my friends, you who have waited faithfully for the punchline of this speech, that having consulted colleagues and in view of the circumstances in parliament, I have concluded that person cannot be me.”

***

In the end, five candidates put themselves forward: May, Gove, Andrea Leadsom, Liam Fox and Stephen Crabb.

In the first ballot of Conservative MPs on 5 July, May established a commanding lead with 165 votes. Leadsom, a junior energy minister and Brexit-supporter, came second with 66 votes. Gove placed third with the support of 48 MPs.

Fox (16) was eliminated, and Crabb (34) withdrew. They both subsequently endorsed May.

Leadsom’s first round performance established herself as the best-positioned pro-Brexit candidate. The junior minister had already endeared herself to the Leave-supporting wing of the Conservative Party through her performance in the final televised debate of the campaign.

Shortly before the first-round ballot, former chancellor Kenneth Clarke was recorded making apparently disparaging remarks about the candidates. He argued that Leadsom had said some “extremely stupid things” and predicted Gove would take Britain to war “with three countries at once”.

Clarke delivered the comments in conversation with Malcolm Rifkind, the former foreign secretary, while preparing for an interview with Sky News. The veteran MP famously described May as a “bloody difficult woman”, before adding: “But you and I worked for Margaret Thatcher.”

The home secretary embraced Clarke’s assessment, telling the Daily Telegraph that British politics needs more “bloody difficult women”.

May added: “We have had one running the country before; we need another now.”

The second ballot of Conservative MPs was held on 7 July with only three candidates in the running. May extended her lead, securing 199 votes. Leadsom again came second with 84 votes, while Gove (46) was eliminated.

This result left May and Leadsom to go forward to a final ballot of the wider Conservative Party membership – with the result initially expected on 9 September.

Clip.

However, mere days after the second ballot, Leadsom’s campaign imploded following a disastrous interview with the Times newspaper. She sparked outrage after suggesting that being a mother gave her an advantage over May, who has no children.

Leadsom was quoted as saying: “Genuinely I feel that being a mum means you have a very real stake in the future of our country, a tangible stake.”

Invited to draw a contrast with May, she added: “I see myself as one, an optimist, and two, a member of a huge family and that’s important to me. My kids are a huge part of my life.”

Leadsom suggested that while May “possibly has nieces, nephews, lots of people”, she herself had “children who are going to have children who will directly be part of what happens next”

https://x.com/emmatuckerWSJ/status/751551212495986688

Leadsom protested that her words had been misrepresented and later apologised to May. But the damage was done.

The junior minister, who was already facing criticism over her inexperience, announced her withdrawal from the contest on 11 July. In a statement, she said that May had secured overwhelming support from MPs and was “ideally placed to implement Brexit”.

She also argued that a nine-week leadership campaign at such a “critical moment” for the UK would be “highly undesirable”.

Clip.

Leadsom’s withdrawal meant the candidates were not put to a membership vote, and May was confirmed as the new Conservative leader that same day.

***

On 13 July, May was appointed as the new prime minister.

She delivered her first speech as prime minister on the steps of Downing Street, which emphasised her commitment to social justice.

May said she wanted to lead a government that worked for everyone rather than being “driven by the interests of the privileged few”.

She famously identified seven “burning injustices” which she vowed to confront. “If you’re born poor, you will die on average nine years earlier than others”, she declared on the steps of Downing Street.

“If you’re black, you’re treated more harshly by the criminal justice system than if you’re white.

“If you’re a white, working-class boy, you’re less likely than anybody else in Britain to go to university.

“If you’re at a state school, you’re less likely to reach the top professions than if you’re educated privately.

“If you’re a woman, you will earn less than a man.

“If you suffer from mental health problems, there’s not enough help to hand.

“If you’re young, you’ll find it harder than ever before to own your own home.”

May added: “We will do everything we can to give you more control over your lives. When we take the big calls, we’ll think not of the powerful, but you. When we pass new laws, we’ll listen not to the mighty but to you.”

The new prime minister constructed a cabinet that reflected both sides of the Brexit divide.

Prominent Brexit campaigners were appointed to senior posts, including Boris Johnson as foreign secretary, David Davis as secretary of state for exiting the European Union (Brexit secretary), and Liam Fox as international trade secretary.

Leadsom was made leader of the House of Commons.

May appointed Philip Hammond and Amber Rudd, both Remain-supporting figures, as chancellor and home secretary respectively.

Notably, George Osborne, the chancellor and Cameron’s closest political ally, was not given a post in the cabinet. This snub, together with May’s “burning injustices” speech, signalled her plan to move on from the Cameron era.

Gove was also sacked as justice secretary.

Only four cabinet ministers stayed in post: Michael Fallon as defence secretary, Jeremy Hunt as health secretary, Alun Cairns as secretary of state for Wales, and David Mundell as secretary of state for Scotland.

***

On 17 January 2017, May delivered a landmark address at Lancaster House in London, setting out her “Plan for Britain” and 12 negotiating priorities for Brexit. The speech marked the end of months of speculation and confusion by formally ruling out Britain’s continued membership of the European single market.

The speech was generally well-received among its target audiences.

Johnson praised May’s address as a “fantastic speech”. Nigel Farage, the former UK Independence Party (Ukip) leader, said: “I can hardly believe that the PM is now using the phrases and words that I’ve been mocked for using for years. Real progress.”

May’s government suffered something of a setback after the supreme court ruled that the government could not initiate Brexit without an act of parliament in the landmark R (Miller) v Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union case.

MPs ultimately approved the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill at second reading by 498 votes to 114 – a majority of 384. The proposed legislation, which received royal assent as the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Act on 16 March, empowered the prime minister to notify the Council of the European Union of the UK’s intention to withdraw, formally triggering the process set out in Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union.

May formally triggered Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union, beginning the legal process for the United Kingdom’s departure, on 29 March. This move officially started a two-year negotiating period for the UK and the EU to agree the terms of the withdrawal.

May, of course, failed to honour her leadership contest pledge not to call a snap general election.

On 18 April, with a view to capitalising on the Conservative Party’s large poll lead (as high as 20 points) over Labour, May announced her intention to call a general election. The prime minister’s thinking may have been influenced by the February 2017 Copeland by-election, which the Conservative Party won from Labour in a historic upset.

However, the 2017 election resulted in a hung parliament – a shock outcome that saw the Conservative Party lose its parliamentary majority. To remain in power, May entered into negotiations with the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP).

The deal provided May with a narrow working majority, allowing her to remain in office, but it left her government constantly vulnerable to pressure from the DUP and eurosceptic voices on her backbenches, notably the European Research Group (ERG).

May initially delayed a vote on her Brexit deal before subjecting it to three defeats from January to March 2019.

The prime minister’s inability to secure parliament’s support for her Brexit deal precipitated her resignation in May 2019.