Tory leadership contest explained: When is the winner out of Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak announced?

2 September 2022, 09:51 | Updated: 2 September 2022, 11:24

Energy bills are rising fast, while the public wait to see if it will be Prime Minister Truss or Sunak offering help - so who's voting and when will we have a new Prime Minister?

Over a summer of record heat, just one percent of the UK population have been voting to decide the next Prime Minister.

Boris Johnson has been effectively powerless since resigning on the 7th July, and whilst energy bills rise to record highs, Downing Street has said it will leave the big strategy to tackle the crisis to the next Prime Minister.

Almost two months since Johnson made his resignation speech, a result is on the horizon - so what happens now?

When do we find out the result of the Tory leadership contest?

The Conservative leadership result is expected to be announced on Monday 5th September.

Boris Johnson is expected to officially leave office the following day (Tuesday 6th September) when he offers his resignation to the Queen.

The new Prime Minister - either Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak - will take charge shortly afterwards, as they are invited by the Queen to form a government.

Traditionally the meetings with the Queen would occur at Buckingham Palace, but this time it will take place at the Queen's Balmoral residence - a decision made in advance, in case mobility issues the Queen has been experiencing suddenly prevented her from travelling to London.

Who's expected to win?

Both pollsters and bookies are convinced that Liz Truss is going to win the contest - Politico's recent poll of polls, which rounds up all the most recent polls of Conservative members, has Ms Truss on 59% of the vote while Mr Sunak is at 32%.

Some bookmakers even have odds of 1/100 for Ms Truss to win.

We won't know for sure until the result is announced on Monday.

Watch: Final Tory leadership hustings: Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss join Nick Ferrari

When is the deadline to vote?

Voting closes at 5pm on Friday 2nd September.

Who can vote?

Anybody who joined as a Conservative Party member on or before the 3rd June 2022 is eligible to vote for the new leader - this is because voters need to be a Conservative member for at least three months before the date the ballot closes to vote.

Estimates of the number of Conservative Party members range from 150,000 to 200,000, with members paying up to £25 a year for their membership.

Read more: Liz Truss v Rishi Sunak explained: What are their policies and where do they clash?

Who are the Conservative members?

Conservative members are overwhelmingly middle class and represent less than one percent of the population - according to research by Queen Mary University.

Nearly 60% of them are over 50, and almost two thirds of them are male, with 50% of members living in London and the South of the UK.

An overwhelming 97% of members are white.

Nationally, only 37% of the total UK population live in London, there are more women than men living in the UK, and ethnic minorities make up 14% of the UK population.