UK leader hopefuls battle for support as nominations close

By JILL LAWLESS
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — Contenders to replace British Prime Minister Boris Johnson are racing to clear their first hurdle: amassing enough support from colleagues to make the Conservative Party leadership ballot. Nominations officially opened Tuesday morning and will close at 6 p.m. (1700GMT). Candidates need support from at least 20 Conservative lawmakers to make the ballot for run-off votes, which will start Wednesday. So far only three of the 11 declared candidates have met the threshold: former Treasury chief Rishi Sunak, Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt and backbench lawmaker Tom Tugendhat. But several others are likely also to reach the mark. The candidates are jostling to replace Johnson, who quit as Conservative leader last week after months of ethics scandals.