Tory leadership favourite would have to keep all sides of the party happy and reward loyal MPs

Boris Johnson has won the backing of more than half of MPs across all factions of the Conservative party, many of whom will be keen to have their enthusiastic outings in the media rewarded with a plum promotion.

But how can Johnson keep the very different wings of the party inside the tent when he has more ambitious backers than jobs to go round – and avoid making enemies by demoting senior supporters?

Here’s a look at how his cabinet appointments could play out.

Chancellor

Liz Truss, one of the earliest supporters of Johnson, has been making the biggest public pitch for this job and is a keen champion of measures such as tax cuts for higher earners that Johnson has made part of his campaign – though the pair disagree strongly on the need to build on the greenbelt, which Truss believes would boost growth.

Yet she is by no means a shoo-in for the job. Sajid Javid has been tipped to have a stronger chance. The health secretary Matt Hancock, who made an unexpected switch to back Johnson, also has his hopes pinned on the Treasury – probably unsuccessfully.

Cabinet Office

Johnson will need a trusted ally in the de facto deputy prime minister role, currently occupied by David Lidington. Earlier in the campaign it was rumoured it could go to Johnson’s leadership rival Jeremy Hunt, though the race has been more bitter than expected.

It is more likely that Johnson could reward his campaign manager, Iain Duncan Smith, with this role, or someone like his former City Hall ally Kit Malthouse, who has won the trust of many MPs for his work on alternative arrangements for the backstop.

Home secretary

Javid could stay in this senior role if Johnson does not make him chancellor – or it could be a job for Hancock if Johnson believes his loyalty deserves a senior promotion. It is also one of the only roles which could go to Hunt and not be seen as a demotion.

Another tipped for the job is Dominic Raab, widely seen to have been auditioning by outlining a plan for an immigration system as part of his own leadership pitch – something denied by Raab at the time.

Foreign secretary

Hunt has resisted sideways moves before, refusing point-blank to move from health when Theresa May attempted to reshuffle him to business secretary, and his allies have briefed that he may try to pull the same move if Johnson wants to move him from the Foreign Office.

If Johnson wanted a change, he could place Amber Rudd in the role if he was convinced she would not resign over no deal – or Penny Mordaunt if he wanted to free up defence for another candidate.

Defence secretary

Johnson could decide to keep Mordaunt, the first female defence secretary, in the role where she has been impressing colleagues. But one of Johnson’s closest and oldest allies, Ben Wallace, is said to have his eye on the job.

Some Tory MPs speculate he will promote Mordaunt, a Brexiter, to one of the big offices of state. Gavin Williamson, who organised MPs for Johnson during the votes in parliament, is rumoured to have told officials he would like to return to the role from which he was sacked by Theresa May for leaking from the National Security Council. However, that is unlikely to be popular with civil servants.

Chief whip

This role will be absolutely pivotal for Johnson as he tries to steer his Brexit policies through a hostile parliament. Grant Shapps, a former Tory chairman, has won admiration in the Johnson camp for his forensic spreadsheet on his fellow MPs that documents all their views and interests. Williamson could also return to the role after working as May’s enforcer but some of Johnson’s allies are concerned he has made too many enemies.

Business secretary

This is the most obvious place to put Truss if she does not make chancellor. The incumbent, Greg Clark, is almost certain to leave the government after abstaining on the most recent votes aimed at stopping no deal. Other Johnson supporters with a shot at the department could include Priti Patel, Esther McVey or Michael Fallon.

Brexit secretary

Johnson needs someone with an eye for detail and existing knowledge of Brussels in this crucial role. Stephen Barclay could stay in the post as someone who endorsed Johnson early.

It could also be a role for Raab, the former Brexit secretary who claims his efforts to strike a tougher bargain were frustrated by No 10.

Justice secretary

This is another department where the incumbent, David Gauke, is likely to head to the backbenches. Johnson could give the role to Raab, a former international lawyer, or to Geoffrey Cox, the current attorney general.

Education secretary

It would probably be a dream role for Andrea Leadsom, a former leader of the House of Commons, who has a specialist interest in early years. However, the brief could also be a juicy promotion for a junior ministerial backer of Johnson – or even his brother, Jo Johnson, though he has serious qualms about no deal.

Health secretary

Johnson could decide to keep Hancock at the brief where he has spent just over a year, or it could be a role he gives to Rudd, which keeps its holder at arm’s length from any Brexit turmoil. This could be another role where Johnson hands a big promotion to a new-generation supporter.

Environment secretary

Johnson’s erstwhile rival Michael Gove has made waves in this brief but he appeared to hint in a speech this week that he was keen to hand on his legacy to a successor. One name in the frame could be Zac Goldsmith, an enthusiastic environmentalist who has also been a cheerleader for Johnson.

Transport secretary

Gove could be handed a department in desperate need of revitalising, especially if Johnson decides that HS2 needs an image makeover. It also gives his rival another tricky department in terms of no-deal planning. Sources close to Johnson have also tipped Williamson for the role.

Work and pensions secretary

Rudd has made no secret of wanting to stay on, ditching her opposition to no deal in a plea to keep her job. Johnson may decide this is a safe non-Brexit place for her, where her softer approach than predecessors could allow him to claim some one nation credentials on domestic policy. On the other hand, he could go harder with an appointment such as Patel or a return for McVey or Duncan Smith.

Housing and communities secretary

James Brokenshire improved his prospects of staying in the job by backing Johnson but he was a May loyalist for so long that a new prime minister is more likely to hand it to one of his own allies.

Several Tory MPs have said they would like to see Gove turn his reforming zeal to a department where the policies could be defining at the next election. However, Malthouse and Jake Berry, two close Johnson allies, have both been ministers in that department so their names are also in the frame.

International development secretary

Johnson had little time for this department when he was in the Foreign Office and was thought to want to absorb it into his own, so he could attempt a merger. It seems unlikely that Rory Stewart, his former leadership rival, will be allowed to stay on.

Patel was not popular with the department but she could make a return or perhaps it could be a fit for Leadsom.

Culture secretary

Jeremy Wright has not made a big mark on this job. It is more likely an longstanding ally will get this gig – or perhaps the chair of the media committee, Damian Collins, who unexpectedly came out for Johnson despite having flirted with the idea of a second referendum.

Trade secretary

Liam Fox, an arch-Brexiter, has demolished Johnson’s pronouncements on trade on more than one occasion, so he will probably be looking for a new face for this job such as Barclay or Raab if not placed elsewhere.