Defeated Conservative leadership contender Esther McVey has come out in support of her former rival Boris Johnson.

Ms McVey, who finished bottom of the first ballot of Tory MPs, said the former foreign secretary had agreed to back her agenda for “blue collar Conservatism”.

Mr Johnson is favourite to succeed Theresa May as prime minister, having topped Thursday’s ballot with more than twice as many votes as his nearest rival, Jeremy Hunt.

Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, Ms McVey said she would “wholeheartedly support” the leadership frontrunner because he had pledged to reach out to “hard-working communities who have been abandoned by Jeremy Corbyn’s divisive Labour Party”.

The MP for Tatton wrote: “He has promised to deliver Brexit on October 31, deal or no deal, and has shown time and time again that he is a dynamic leader, capable of building a strong team around him that will deliver on his promises.

“Our country is crying out for strong, optimistic leadership and Boris is the man best equipped to take us out of the EU, to transform our country into an outward-looking, confident, self-governing nation, and to implement a policy agenda that will bring back the voters we have lost and ensure we don’t allow Jeremy Corbyn’s manifesto of economic carnage to plunge us back into the dark ages.”

Who could succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader? Show all 9 1 /9 Who could succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader? Who could succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader? Boris Johnson Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson has long been hopeful, he previously stood in the leadership contest that followed the Brexit vote and has at many times since been thought to be maneuvering himself towards the goal. He remains a darling of the party's right wing, particularly those in the ERG, and is the most popular choice among Tory voters but his leadership bid would be fiercely opposed by many MPs PA Who could succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader? Michael Gove Environment secretary Michael Gove is another member who has long wanted to be leader. He has lately been known for rousing his party in the commons, his recent speeches on the Brexit deal and Labour's no confidence motion have overshadowed the Prime Minister's. He has been loyal to the Prime Minister, partly to shed his reputation as a backstabber who abandoned Boris Johnson to stand against him in the 2016 leadership election Getty Who could succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader? Dominic Raab Former Brexit secretary Dominic Raab has emerged as a favourite to be the Brexiteer candidate in a contest to succeed to Ms May. He displayed a grip on detail in his role as Brexit secretary. When asked recently if he would like to become prime minister he replied "never say never" Getty Who could succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader? Rory Stewart International development secretary Rory Stewart is pitching himself as the sensible candidate, promising to rule out both a second referendum and a no-deal Brexit. He was only recently promoted to the cabinet, previously serving as prisons minister, where he caught headlines with a pledge to resign if he could not reduce levels of violence within a year PA Who could succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader? Esther McVey The former work and pensions secretary announced that she will be standing for the leadership when May leaves. McVey is the first to explicitly state that she intends to stand. She resigned from the cabinet in protest over May's Brexit deal AFP/Getty Who could succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader? Sajid Javid Home secretary Sajid Javid is said to have a plan in place for a leadership race. He made headlines over Christmas when he declared that people smuggling over the English channel was a "major incident" and more recently when he revoked the citizenship of ISIS bride Shamima Begum. Son of a bus driver, he wants the Conservatives to be seen as the party of social mobility PA Who could succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader? Jeremy Hunt Foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt was recently thought to be the favourite in the event of a leadership race as he could sell himself as the man to unite the party. Critics worry that his long stint as health secretary could return to haunt him at a general election. He has reportedly been holding meetings with Tory MPs over breakfast to promote his leadership PA Who could succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader? Andrea Leadsom Following the Prime Minister's second defeat over her Brexit deal, Leader of the house Andrea Leadsom hosted a dinner party at which "leadership was the only topic of conversation", The Times heard. Leadsom ran against Theresa May in the 2016 leadership election before dropping out, allowing May to become Prime Minister AFP/Getty Who could succeed Theresa May as Conservative leader? Priti Patel Former international development secretary Priti Patel is thought to be positioning herself as a contender. One MP told The Independent "she knows she's from the right of the party, the part which is going to choose the next leader, so she's reminding everyone she's there." Patel left the government late in 2017 after it emerged that she had held undisclosed meetings with Israeli officials PA

Ms McVey automatically slipped out of the race to lead her party after winning the backing of only nine other MPs in the first-round ballot.

Mr Johnson scooped the support of 114 Tory MPs, ahead of second-placed Mr Hunt on 43.

Andrea Leadsom and Mark Harper were also forced to step aside after failing to secure 17 votes, the minimum threshold for progressing to the next round.

Matt Hancock, the health secretary, later chose to drop out of the race, leaving six MPs in contention.

Mr Johnson’s rivals on Saturday rejected calls for them to drop out of the race and allow the former London mayor an unchallenged “coronation”.

Senior party figures had reportedly hoped to avoid weeks of “blue on blue” attacks by convincing the underdogs to step aside.

But the home secretary, Sajid Javid, the foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, the former Brexit secretary, Dominic Raab, and the international development secretary, Rory Stewart, all strongly condemned the plan.

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All the candidates except Mr Johnson will take part on a televised debate on Channel 4 on Sunday evening, with Mr Johnson's opponents pouring scorn on him for refusing to take part.

“If you can’t take the heat of the TV studios what chance of taking the heat of the negotiating chamber in Brussels?,” Mr Raab told The Daily Telegraph.

Channel 4 intends to present viewers with an empty podium in place of the former foreign secretary.