Having been shown clips of Commons speeches by 11 possible candidates, however, Laura was drawn to Tom Tugendhat, the privately educated former Army officer and son of a High Court judge, and the first to say he would throw his hat into the ring if there were a Conservative party leadership contest.
“He sounded passionate and, if he’s ex-Services, he’s dedicated to his country, which I think always give you a little bit more,” she says.
In Surrey, there were warm words for Jeremy Hunt, the local MP, but less so as leadership material. Jon, the company director, said: “He came across quite wishy-washy when he stood last time.”
In a final vote, eight of the nine participants said they were leaning towards Mr Sunak. Five members of the group wanted to hear more about Steve Baker, one of the standard-bearers of free market ideas within the party, having seen a clip of the former Brexit minister challenging a minister over Covid-19 policies.
In Bury, Carl and Martin both opted for Dominic Raab, the Deputy Prime Minister, before even seeing the clips.
“He’s not a pushover,” says Carl, contrasting him with Mr Sunak. “Boris is a strong character and that’s pushed him through. I think Dominic Raab would be a strong character.”
Martin agrees, saying: “Raab is probably one of the better ones for standing up to the other side, to the politicians.” Having seen a clip of Mr Raab unveiling his reforms to the Human Rights Act, Janet, who works in recruitment, said he seemed “more passionate” than others.
Tom Waterhouse, associate director of Public First, who led the groups, points out that the attributes the voters appeared to seek in a new leader were “all the things they like about Boris: someone strong, decisive, who gets things done”.
Unfortunately for Mr Johnson, and perhaps unsurprisingly, the need for any new candidate to be untainted by the scandal over Covid rule breaches was also a stipulation brought up by some.
Speaking about the Chancellor, Marilyn says: “I can’t imagine he’d have been at these parties.” Favourite he may have once been, but Boris Johnson, it seems, cannot have his cake and eat it.
