Former British Interior Minister Priti Patel announced her candidacy for the leadership of the opposition Conservative Party on Saturday, becoming the fifth candidate

vying to succeed the outgoing Rishi Sunak.

Sunak resigned as party leader following the Conservatives' worst election performance earlier this month but will remain as acting leader until his successor is chosen.

Patel is the first female candidate to enter the race, launching her campaign with the slogan "Unite to Win," highlighting the party's need for unity after 14 turbulent years in government.

"It is time to put unity before personal vendetta, country before party, and delivery before self-interest," Patel stated.

Patel resigned as International Development Minister in 2017 over undisclosed meetings with Israeli officials that breached diplomatic protocol. However, she returned to government in 2019 as Interior Minister under then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson. She has also held junior ministerial roles in the Department for Work and Pensions and the Treasury.

A Member of Parliament since 2010, Patel has a background in public relations.

The other candidates in the race ahead of the Monday nomination deadline are former Security Minister Tom Tugendhat, former Foreign Minister James Cleverly, former Work and Pensions Minister Mel Stride, and former Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick.

The leadership contest will involve the party's elected lawmakers first narrowing the field to four candidates, who will then present their cases at the Conservative Party conference in late September. The candidates will subsequently be reduced to two, who will be put forward for a vote by all party members. The new leader will be announced on November 2. Photo by Richard Townshend, Wikimedia commons.