Leader of the Conservative Party (UK)

The leader of the Conservative Party (officially the leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party) is the highest position within the United Kingdom's Conservative Party. The current holder of the position is Rishi Sunak, who was elected to the position on 24 October 2022, following his unopposed victory in the party's leadership election.[1]

Leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party
Logo for the Conservative Party
Incumbent
Rishi Sunak
since 24 October 2022
TypeParty leader
StatusChief executive officer
Inaugural holderRobert Peel (de facto)
Bonar Law (de jure)
Formation1834 (de facto)
1922 (de jure)

From the party's formation in 1834 until 1922, the leader of the Conservative Party was not a formal position; instead, there was a party leader in each chamber of Parliament, and they were considered equal unless one took precedence over the other, such as when one was serving as prime minister. Following the passage of the Parliament Act 1911, the reduction of power in the House of Lords suggested that the Conservative leader in the House of Commons would be preeminent, but this fact was not formalised until 1922.

Since 1922, a leader of the Conservative Party has been formally elected, even when the party is in opposition. Originally, the party leader was appointed opaquely by other high-ranking members of the party. This process was gradually democratised in the late 20th century; in 1965, the appointment was linked to a vote by party MPs, and in 1998, the process was opened to all party members to decide between the last two candidates selected by parliamentarians.[2][3] Under party rules, members can vote in the Conservative leadership even if they are not British citizens, do not live in the UK and do not have the right to vote in a UK general election.[4][5]

When the Conservative Party is in government, as it currently is, the leader would usually become the prime minister of the United Kingdom, first lord of the Treasury and minister for the civil service, as well as appointing the cabinet. Concordantly, when the Party is in opposition, the leader of the Conservative Party usually acts (as the second largest party) as the Leader of the Opposition, and chairs the shadow cabinet. As of October 2022, three of the party's leaders have been women: Margaret Thatcher, Theresa May, and Liz Truss, all of whom have served as prime minister. Rishi Sunak is the first British Asian party leader and prime minister.[6]

Selection process

Under the party's constitution,[2] leaders are elected by serving MPs and party members whose membership started at least three months prior to the closing of a ballot. Candidates must be serving MPs. A former leader who has resigned may not stand in the contest triggered by their departure.

Those who wish to stand must notify the 1922 Committee, a body representing backbench Conservative Party MPs, which has broad powers to set the rules of the leadership race (e.g. the minimum number of nominees candidates need).

The party's practice is for MPs to eliminate candidates through multiple rounds of voting until two remain, from whom the winner is then chosen by a ballot of party members.

The 1922 Committee's chairman acts as the returning officer for all stages of the leadership election process.

Overall leaders of the party (1834–1922)

Overall leader
(birth–death)
PortraitConstituency or titleTook officeLeft officeGovernment
PartyPrime MinisterTerm
Sir Robert Peel
(1788–1850)
Tamworth18 December 1834[a]29 June 1846Conhimself1834–35
WhigMelbourne1835–41
Conhimself1841–46
Edward Smith-Stanley
(1799–1869)
Baron Stanley
(1846–1851)
29 June 184627 February 1868WhigRussell1846–52
14th Earl of Derby
(1851–1868)
Conhimself1852
PeelAberdeen1852–55
WhigPalmerston1855–58
Conhimself1858–59
LibPalmerston1859–65
LibRussell1865–66
Conhimself1866–68
Benjamin Disraeli
(1804–1881)
Buckinghamshire
(1868–1876)
27 February 186819 April 1881[b]Conhimself1868
LibGladstone1868–74
Conhimself1874–80
1st Earl of Beaconsfield
(1876–1881)
LibGladstone1880–85
vacant
Leader in the House of Lords
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury
Leader in the House of Commons
Stafford Northcote
19 April 188123 June 1885
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil
(1830–1903)
3rd Marquess of Salisbury23 June 188511 July 1902Conhimself1885–86
LibGladstone1886
Conhimself1886–92
LibGladstone1892–94
LibRosebery1894–95
Conhimself1895–1902
Arthur Balfour
(1848–1930)
Manchester East
(1902–1906)
11 July 190213 November 1911Conhimself1902–05
City of London
(1906–1911)
LibC.-Bannerman1905–08
LibAsquith1908–16
vacant
Leader in the House of Lords
Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne
Leader in the House of Commons
Bonar Law
13 November 191110 December 1916[c]
LibLloyd George1916–22
Bonar Law
(1858–1923)
Bootle
(1916–1918)
10 December 1916[c]21 March 1921
Glasgow Central
(1918–1921)
vacant
Leader in the House of Lords
George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston
Leader in the House of Commons
Austen Chamberlain
21 March 192123 October 1922 [c]

Leaders of the party (1922–present)

Leader
(birth–death)
PortraitConstituency or titleTook officeLeft officeGovernment
PartyPrime MinisterTerm
Bonar Law
(1858–1923)
Glasgow Central23 October 1922 28 May 1923Conhimself1922–23
Stanley Baldwin
(1867–1947)
Bewdley28 May 1923
(Party meeting)
31 May 1937Conhimself1923–24
LabMacDonald1924
Conhimself1924–29
LabMacDonald1929–35
NLab
Conhimself1935–37
Neville Chamberlain
(1869–1940)
Birmingham Edgbaston31 May 1937
(Party meeting)
9 October 1940Conhimself1937–40
Churchill1940
Winston Churchill
(1874–1965)
Epping
(1940–1945)
9 October 1940
(Party meeting)
21 April 1955Conhimself1940–45
Woodford
(1945–1955)
LabAttlee1945–51
Conhimself1951–55
Anthony Eden
(1897–1977)
Warwick and Leamington21 April 1955
(Party meeting)
22 January 1957Conhimself1955–57
Harold Macmillan
(1894–1986)
Bromley22 January 1957
(Party meeting)
11 November 1963Conhimself1957–63
Alec Douglas-Home
(1903–1995)
Earl of Home
(1963)
11 November 1963
(Party meeting)
27 July 1965Conhimself1963–64
Kinross and Western Perthshire
(1963–1965)
LabWilson1964–70
Edward Heath
(1916–2005)
Bexley
(1965–1974)
27 July 1965 11 February 1975
Conhimself1970–74
Sidcup
(1974–1975)
LabWilson1974–76
Margaret Thatcher
(1925–2013)
Finchley11 February 1975 27 November 1990
LabCallaghan1976–79
Conherself1979–90
John Major
(b. 1943)
Huntingdon27 November 1990 19 June 1997
Conhimself1990–97
LabBlair1997–2007
William Hague
(b. 1961)
Richmond (Yorks)19 June 1997 13 September 2001
Iain Duncan Smith
(b. 1954)
Chingford and Woodford Green13 September 2001 6 November 2003
Michael Howard
(b. 1941)
Folkestone and Hythe6 November 2003 7 October 2005[7]
David Cameron
(b. 1966)
Witney6 December 2005 11 July 2016
LabBrown2007–10
Coalhimself2010–15
Con2015–16
Theresa May
(b. 1956)
Maidenhead11 July 2016 7 June 2019Conherself2016–19
7 June 2019
(Acting)
23 July 2019
Boris Johnson
(b. 1964)
Uxbridge and South Ruislip23 July 2019 5 September 2022Conhimself2019–22
Liz Truss
(b. 1975)
South West Norfolk5 September 2022 24 October 2022Conherself 2022
Rishi Sunak
(b. 1980)
Richmond (Yorks)24 October 2022 IncumbentConhimself2022–present

Timeline

Rishi SunakLiz TrussBoris JohnsonTheresa MayDavid CameronMichael HowardIain Duncan SmithWilliam HagueJohn MajorMargaret ThatcherEdward HeathAlec Douglas-HomeHarold MacmillanAnthony EdenWinston ChurchillNeville ChamberlainStanley BaldwinBonar LawArthur BalfourRobert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of SalisburyBenjamin DisraeliEdward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of DerbyRobert Peel

Houses of Lords and Commons leaders

Leaders in the House of Lords (1834–present)

Those asterisked were considered the overall leader of the party.

PortraitLeaderTerm of officeLOTOOther ministerial offices held as Leader of the House of Lords
The Duke of Richmond and Lennox26 February
1870
21 August
1876
1870–1874Lord President of the Council (21 February 1874 – 28 April 1880)
The Earl of Beaconsfield*21 August
1876
19 April
1881
1880–1881Prime Minister (20 February 1874 – 21 April 1880)
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal (12 August 1876 – 4 February 1878)
The Marquess of Salisbury*9 May
1881
12 July
1902
1881–1885
1886
1892–1895
Prime Minister (23 June 1885 – 28 January 1886)
Foreign Secretary (24 June 1885 – 6 February 1886)
Prime Minister (25 July 1886 – 11 August 1892)
Foreign Secretary (14 January 1887 – 11 August 1892)
Prime Minister (25 June 1895 – 11 July 1902)
Foreign Secretary (29 June 1895 – 12 November 1900)
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal (12 November 1900 – 11 July 1902)
The Duke of Devonshire12 July
1902
10 October
1903
Lord President of the Council (29 June 1895 – 19 October 1903)
President of the Board of Education (3 March 1900 – 8 August 1902)
The Marquess of Lansdowne10 October
1903
10 December
1916
1905–1915Foreign Secretary (12 November 1900 – 4 December 1905)
Minister without Portfolio (25 May 1915 – 10 December 1916)
The Earl Curzon of Kedleston
(1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston from 1921)
10 December
1916
20 March
1925
1924President of the Air Board (15 May 1916 – 3 January 1917)
Lord President of the Council (10 December 1916 – 23 October 1919)
Foreign Secretary (23 October 1919 – 22 January 1924)
Lord President of the Council (3 November 1924 – 20 March 1925)
The Marquess of Salisbury27 April
1925
17 June
1931
1929–1931Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal (6 November 1924 – 4 June 1929)
The Viscount Hailsham17 June
1931
7 June
1935
1931War Secretary (5 November 1931 – 7 June 1935)
The Marquess of Londonderry7 June
1935
22 November
1935
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal
The Viscount Halifax22 November
1935
21 February
1938
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal (22 November 1935 – 28 May 1937)
Lord President of the Council (22 May 1937 – 9 March 1938)
The Earl Stanhope21 February
1938
14 May
1940
President of the Board of Education (28 May 1937 – 27 October 1938)
First Lord of the Admiralty (27 October 1938 – 3 September 1939)
Lord President of the Council (3 September 1939 – 10 May 1940)
The Viscount Caldecot14 May
1940
3 October
1940
Dominions Secretary
The Viscount Halifax3 October
1940
22 December
1940
Foreign Secretary (21 February 1938 – 22 December 1940)
The Lord Lloyd22 December
1940
8 February
1941
Colonial Secretary (12 May 1940 – 4 February 1941)
The Lord Moyne8 February
1941
22 February
1942
Colonial Secretary
Viscount Cranborne
(5th Marquess of Salisbury from 1947)
21 February
1942
29 March
1957
1945–1951Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal (21 February 1942 – 24 September 1943)
Colonial Secretary (21 February 1942 – 22 November 1942)
Dominions Secretary (24 September 1943 – 26 July 1945)
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal (28 October 1951 – 7 May 1952)
Commonwealth Relations Secretary (12 March 1952 – 24 November 1952)
Lord President of the Council (25 November 1952 – 29 March 1957)
The Earl of Home29 March
1957
27 July
1960
Commonwealth Relations Secretary (7 April 1955 – 27 July 1960)
Lord President of the Council (until 17 September 1957, from 14 October 1959)
The Viscount Hailsham27 July
1960
20 October
1963
Lord President of the Council
– Minister for Science (14 October 1959 – 20 October 1963)
The Lord Carrington20 October
1963
20 June
1970
1964–1970Minister without Portfolio (20 October 1963 – 16 October 1964)
The Earl Jellicoe20 June
1970
23 May
1973
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal
The Lord Windlesham23 May
1973
4 March
1974
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal
The Lord Carrington4 March
1974
4 May
1979
1974–1979
The Lord Soames5 May
1979
14 September
1981
Lord President of the Council
The Baroness Young14 September
1981
11 June
1983
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (14 September 1981 – 7 April 1982)
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal (7 April 1982 – 11 June 1983)
The Viscount Whitelaw11 June
1983
10 January
1988
Lord President of the Council
The Lord Belstead10 January
1988
28 November
1990
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal
The Lord Waddington28 November
1990
11 April
1992
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal
The Lord Wakeham11 April
1992
20 July
1994
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal
Viscount Cranborne
(7th Marquess of Salisbury from 2003)
20 July
1994
3 December
1998
1997–1998Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal (20 July 1994 – 2 May 1997)
The Lord Strathclyde3 December
1998
7 January
2013
1998–2010Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (12 May 2010 – 7 January 2013)
The Lord Hill of Oareford7 January
2013
15 July
2014
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
The Baroness Stowell of Beeston15 July
2014
14 July
2016
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal
The Baroness Evans of Bowes Park14 July
2016
6 September
2022
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal
The Lord True6 September
2022
IncumbentLord Keeper of the Privy Seal

Leaders in the House of Commons (1834–1922)

Those asterisked were considered the overall leader of the party.

Elections of Conservative leaders by party meeting

House of Commons

#Date of meetingName of leader electedCategory attending meetingLocation of meetingChairProposerSeconderRefs
19 February 1848The Marquess of GranbyProtectionist commonersResidence of George Bankes[9]
[10]
21 February 1849Benjamin DisraeliResidence of the Lord Stanley of Bickerstaffe[11]
The Marquess of Granby
John Charles Herries
313 November 1911Bonar LawUnionist Members of ParliamentCarlton Club, Pall MallHenry Chaplin, senior Privy Councillor on the Unionist benches (appointed 1885)Walter LongAusten Chamberlain[12]
421 March 1921Austen ChamberlainUnionist Members of ParliamentCarlton Club, Pall MallLord Edmund Talbot, Conservative Chief WhipCaptain Ernest George PretymanSir Edward Coates: "a back bencher and one of the rank and file"[13]
523 October 1922Bonar LawUnionist peers, MPs, and candidatesHotel Cecil, The StrandThe Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, Leader of the House of LordsThe Marquess Curzon of KedlestonStanley Baldwin: "chosen ... to be the spokesman for the House of Commons"[14]
628 May 1923Stanley Baldwin"Conservative Party"Hotel Cecil, The StrandThe Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, Leader of the House of LordsThe Earl of DerbyCaptain Ernest George Pretyman: "a member of the House of Commons who [had] been a colleague in that House of Mr Bonar Law for something over 25 years"[15]
731 May 1937Neville Chamberlain"peers and MPs who receive the Conservative whip, ... prospective candidates who have been adopted by constituency associations, and ... members of the executive committee of the National Union of Conservative and Unionist associations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland."Caxton Hall, Caxton StreetThe Viscount Halifax, Leader of the House of LordsThe Earl of DerbyWinston Churchill (Privy Councillor since 1907)[16]
89 October 1940Winston Churchill"Peers and MPs who receive the Conservative whip, ... prospective candidates who have been adopted by constituency associations, and ... members of the Executive Committee of the National Union of Conservative and Unionist Associations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland."LondonThe Viscount Halifax, Leader of the House of LordsThe Viscount HalifaxSir George Courthope: "one of the senior back benchers of the party"[17]
921 April 1955Sir Anthony Eden"Conservative and National Liberal members of the two Houses of Parliament, Conservative and National Liberal parliamentary candidates and members of the executive committee of the National Union of Conservative and Unionist Associations"Church House, Dean's Yard, WestminsterThe Marquess of Salisbury, Leader of the House of LordsThe Marquess of SalisburyRab Butler (Privy Councillor since 1939)[18]
1022 January 1957Harold Macmillan"Conservative and Unionist members of the House of Lords and the House of Commons, ... prospective parliamentary candidates and ... members of the executive committee of the National Union of Conservative and Unionist Associations. National Liberal members of both Houses of Parliament and adopted prospective candidates were also present"The Marquess of Salisbury, Leader of the House of LordsThe Marquess of SalisburyRab Butler (Privy Councillor since 1939)[19]
1111 November 1963Sir Alec Douglas-Home"members of both Houses of Parliament taking the Conservative whip, prospective candidates who [had] been adopted by constituency associations, members of the executive of the mass party, and National Liberal MPs and adopted prospective candidates"Church House, Dean's Yard, WestminsterThe Lord Carrington, Leader of the House of LordsThe Lord CarringtonGeoffrey Lloyd: "the senior Conservative Privy Councillor in the Commons next in line to Sir Winston Churchill" (appointed 1943)[20]

House of Lords

#Date of meetingName of leader electedCategory attending meetingLocation of meetingChairProposerSeconderNotes
19 March 1846The Lord Stanley of BickerstaffePeersResidence of the Duke of RichmondThe Earl of Eglinton[21]
215 February 1869The Earl Cairns23 peersThe Earl of MalmesburyThe Earl of Malmesbury[22]
326 February 1870The Duke of RichmondPeersCarlton ClubThe Marquess of SalisburyThe Earl of Derby[23]
49 May 1881The Marquess of SalisburyConservative members of the House of LordsResidence of the Marquess of AbergavennyThe Marquess of AbergavennyThe Duke of RichmondThe Earl Cairns[24]

Deputy Leaders of the Conservative Party

Deputy Leader of the Conservative Party is sometimes an official title of a senior Conservative politician of the United Kingdom.

Some are given this title officially by the party, such as Peter Lilley,[25] while others are given the title as an unofficial description by the media, such as William Hague.[26] The first politician to hold the office as such was Reginald Maudling, appointed by Edward Heath in 1965.[27] Distinct from being "second-in-command", there is formally no current position of deputy party leader in the party's hierarchy.[28]

The term has sometimes been mistakenly used to refer to the party's deputy chair.[29]

List of deputy leaders

NameTerm beganTerm endedConcurrent office(s)Leader
Reginald Maudling4 August 1965[30]18 July 1972[31]Deputy Leader of the Opposition (1965–1970)[32]
Shadow Foreign Secretary (1965)
Shadow Defence Secretary (1968–1969)
Home Secretary (1970–1972)
Edward Heath
Not in use from 1972 to 1975
The Viscount Whitelaw12 February 1975[33]7 August 1991[34]Deputy Leader of the Opposition (1975–1979)[35]
Shadow Home Secretary (1976–1979)
Home Secretary (1979–1983)
Leader of the House of Lords (1983–1988)[36]
Margaret Thatcher
John Major
Not in use from 1991 to 1998
Peter Lilley2 June 1998[37]15 June 1999[37]Deputy Leader of the Opposition (1998–1999)[38]William Hague
Not in use from 1999 to 2001
Michael Ancram18 September 2001[39]6 December 2005[39]Deputy Leader of the Opposition (2001–2005)[40]
Shadow Foreign Secretary (2001–2005)[39]
Shadow Defence Secretary (2005)[39]
Iain Duncan Smith
Michael Howard
Not in use since 2005

See also

Notes

References