Priti Patel among the serious candidates to take charge of the Tories!

It is still unclear when the contest will take place as the party mulls over how to appoint a successor to Rishi Sunak.

Former home secretary Priti Patel is going to run to replace Rishi Sunak as leader of the Conservative Party, Sky News understands.

Rumours have been circling Westminster for months that the Tory MP was lining herself up for the race if the party lost the general election.

Now, after Labour's landslide victory two weeks ago, Ms Patel has made the decision to go ahead, as first reported in the Telegraph.

A number of other candidates are expected to throw their hats in the ring too, including Ms Patel's successor in the Home Office, Suella Braverman.

Other contenders include former business secretary Kemi Badenoch, ex-immigration minister Robert Jenrick and the previous security minister Tom Tugenhadt.

But none have officially announced their candidacy.

Mr Sunak is continuing in post until a new leader is announced, but the party are split over whether to make it a quick handover or a longer contest.

Shadow foreign secretary Andrew Mitchell told Sky News on Monday that Mr Sunak's instinct "is almost certainly to go" but more time was needed for potential successors to make their case.

But other senior figures fear a protracted contest could leave a vacuum for Labour and Reform UK to capitalise on.

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