What the papers say – June 21

The Tory leadership battle between Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt dominates the front pages on Friday after Michael Gove was eliminated from the race.

The Daily Mail runs with the headline: “Boris gets his revenge”, and reports that former foreign secretary Mr Johnson was accused of lending the votes of his supporters to Mr Hunt to ensure Mr Gove was ousted.

The Daily Telegraph also runs with the revenge theme and says Mr Gove’s defeat came three years after he was accused of stabbing Mr Johnson in the back by reneging on a deal to manage his leadership campaign, deciding instead to run against him.

“Revenge is sweet for Boris”, the Daily Express‘s headline says, as the paper says Mr Johnson is now just one step away from Number 10.

The Times describes it as a “dirty battle for No 10”, and reports that Mr Gove lost by just two votes in a final ballot.

The i also runs with the “dirty tricks” theme, while The Guardian questions whether the result was “fixed” as rumours of tactical voting grew.

Mr Johnson won 160 votes to Mr Hunt’s 77, the Metro says.

The Financial Times looks ahead to the ensuing four-week battle between the two remaining candidates, reporting that they will now vie for the support of 160,000 Tory party members.

And the Daily Mirror also leads on the two final candidates.

Meanwhile, The Sun reports on claims the new Mastermind champion won with a wrong answer.

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