The Conservative Party is expected to hold an extraordinary general meeting of its voluntary wing to vote on Theresa May’s leadership.
The meeting will take place following its request by more than 65 conservative association chairs. The Telegraph has reported that a petition for the meeting has been handed to party chiefs with the signatures of more than 70 local association chairs.
It is believed to be the first time this procedure has ever been used.
The meeting will be comprised of the party’s 800 most senior voluntary officers. Any vote of no-confidence in Theresa May’s leadership will be non-binding but politically significant.
The Prime Minister won the support of around two thirds of her MPs in a confidence vote last December. Current rules of the 1922 Committee – the parliamentary group of the Conservative Party – mean another confidence vote cannot be triggered until December 2019.
However, an expression of no-confidence by the Conservative grassroots could prompt a change to 1922 Committee rules, to enable a fresh confidence vote of Tory MPs to take place sooner.
