What is a hustings?
HUSTINGS take place in the run up to an election.
After Boris Johnson announced his resignation as Prime Minister, the final two Tories bidding to become the new leader will be scrutinised at hustings by Conservative Party members.
What is a hustings?
A hustings is an event where election candidates or parties discuss policies and answer questions from the audience.
It allows voters to learn more about each candidate's stance on a range of issues, and ask questions of them.
There are two types of hustings - selective and non-selective.
According to the , selective hustings "can reasonably be regarded as intended to influence voters to vote for or against particular political parties or candidates".
These hustings may not include all parties.
On the other hand, non-selective hustings are not intended to influence voters.
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All candidates and parties are invited to take part, or the organiser decides who to invite and they have impartial reasons for not inviting certain candidates or parties.
"On the hustings" is also a phrase used for campaigning - such as making speeches and meeting people - associated with an election.
How is a new Tory Party leader elected?
When the leader of the party resigns, then a contest for a new party leader is triggered.
If the leader is also the Prime Minister at the time of resignation, they cannot simply leave office without a new leader being elected.
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They need to remain as PM until a new leader is found, just like Theresa May did in 2019 and likewise David Cameron in 2016.
Boris Johnson is staying on as Prime Minister despite resigning on July 7, 2022, until a new leader of the Conservatives is elected.
If the current PM cannot remain in their position on resigning, they can ask the Queen to appoint a new Prime Minister until the party chooses its leader.
In 2022, the candidates for Tory leadership must first be nominated by 20 MPs before entering the first vote.
After the first round of voting the candidates with less than 30 votes will be eliminated.
On July 13, 2022, six candidates remained in the process after the first vote, with Nadhim Zahawi and Jeremy Hunt failing to get enough backing.
Rishi Sunak, Penny Mordaunt, Liz Truss, Tom Tugendhat, Kemi Badenoch, and Suella Braverman all remain in the contest after securing enough votes in the opening ballot.
The second round of voting takes place on Thursday, July 14, 2022.
In the Thursday ballot, only the bottom-ranked candidate will be eliminated.
The top two candidates will then be decided and move on to stage two of the process - the mass membership stage.
They will be scrutinised at hustings by Tory party members during the summer.
Ballot papers will be sent to the members in August with the new leader and Prime Minister announced on September 5, 2022..
Can I watch hustings on TV?
Hustings are normally shown on TV channels such as Sky News.
The first live TV debate in the Conservative leadership race will take place in the evening of Monday, July 18, 2022, on Sky News.
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It will be hosted by Kay Burley.
There will be a virtual audience who will be allowed to ask questions.