Rees-Mogg backbencher of the year in grassroots Tories’ poll of favourite MPs

Jacob Ress-Mogg has been named the backbench Tory MP of the year in a poll which revealed the most popular MPs among grassroots members.

Mr Rees-Mogg, who was formerly business secretary and Commons leader, won 64 votes out of the 611 in a poll of party members run by the ConservativeHome website.

The MP for North East Somerset has been on the backbenches since October 2022 when he was ousted from government amid the collapse of Liz Truss’s short-lived premiership.

A few months later, he took on a role as a presenter for GB News, joining several other political figures working for the channel, including Lee Anderson and Nigel Farage.

Mr Rees-Mogg narrowly beat Miriam Cates, co-founder of the right-wing New Conservatives group of Tory MPs, to first place in the poll by just three votes, gaining 61 votes.

Ms Cates didn’t make it into the top five in the 2022 survey, but has risen in prominence over the last year due to her work with the New Conservatives and her outspoken views on family life and gender identity.

Third place in the poll went to former home secretary Suella Braverman with 33 votes while Lee Anderson, who topped the survey last year, received 31 votes.

Both Ms Braverman, who was sacked last month in response to controversial comments she made in an op-ed, and Mr Anderson have been forthright this year in their calls for the Government to toughen its stance on migration.

Mr Anderson, who is still considered a backbench MP despite being deputy party chairman, has called for the Government to “ignore” international law to send asylum seekers to Rwanda.

Ms Braverman has also refused to be quiet over her departure from the Government, publishing a scathing letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in which she accused him of having “repeatedly failed to deliver” on immigration pledges.

Fifth place went to former prime minister Theresa May, who has been a backbench MP since she departed from No 10 in 2019, with 27 votes.

The ConservativeHome member’s panel suggests grassroots members prefer traditional and right-wing Conservative MPs. With a leadership election likely should Rishi Sunak lose next year’s general election, it will bolster the likes of Ms Braverman who is expected to stand.

MPs will narrow the field down to two candidates, with members making the final choice.

The site also publishes a periodic league table of Cabinet ministers, which could prove an indication of who may succeed Mr Sunak as party leader.

In the most recent survey, published on 3 December, Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch came out on top with a net satisfaction rating of 63.4, followed by Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt with 49.8.

Ms Badenoch is seen as a favourite among grassroots members in a future leadership contest and ran in the 2022 race won by Liz Truss in which she came in fourth.

Ms Mordaunt ran twice for the leadership last year, coming in the first contests and losing out to Mr Sunak in the second contest.