Sir James Cleverly has said he is resigning from the Shadow Cabinet to run for London mayor.
“I am putting myself forward to be the Conservative candidate for mayor of London, because our capital needs more than an administrator,” the Tory MP wrote in The Sunday Times.
He is understood to have resigned from his role as shadow housing secretary effective immediately, after informing Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch of his plan on Thursday.
A former home and foreign secretary, Cleverly lost out to Badenoch on his 2024 Conservative leadership bid – and now has his sights set on leading the capital.
According to The Sunday Times, a source close to Badenoch revealed she is “gutted” to lose Cleverly, but “delighted that someone of his calibre wants to put himself forward to be Conservative nominee for mayor of London”.
