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Boris Johnson Tops 1st Conservative Leadership Ballot

Jamie Dettmer

   LONDON - Britain's Conservative lawmakers held the first in a series of
   knockout ballots Thursday to pick a successor for the Brexit-fouled
   Theresa May as party leader and the country's prime minister -- and as
   predicted, frontrunner Boris Johnson, the former foreign secretary,
   topped the poll.

   Conservative insiders say the race is now his to lose.

   Johnson's frontrunner status is all the more remarkable considering
   that fewer than three years ago, his bid to succeed David Cameron,
   May's predecessor, as prime minister, crashed when his campaign was
   sabotaged by a rival.

   Slicker presentation and better preparation by Johnson and his team
   appear to be paying off by securing the backing of 114 of the 313
   lawmakers. Jeremy Hunt, the current foreign secretary, came second with
   43 votes in a field of nearly a dozen hopefuls.

   It will take several weeks to conclude the ballots after a series of
   votes whittles down the hopefuls to just two contenders. Then the
   160,000 or so party members vote for a winner.

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