Rishi Sunak is ‘pushy and impolite’ and ‘not PM materials’ – say his personal candidates

Rishi Sunak is “pushy and rude”, “laughable” and “not PM material”, according to his own Tory candidates.

This newspaper has seen online posts and comments by four Conservatives hoping to be MPs after the election, which are uncomplimentary about their party leader. It comes after the Tories faced a last minute scramble to select candidates before Friday’s deadline – as Mr Sunak’s chances of preventing a Tory wipeout in the election dwindled.

Lucy Trimnel, the candidate for the marginal seat of Somerton and Frome, called Mr Sunak “pushy and rude in 2022, while she was a local councillor.

Reacting to a leadership debate with Liz Truss, She wrote on Twitter that Mr Sunak had “put on an act which I suspect he’s been practising for days.” She also wrote: “I don’t feel I can trust him as he appears to want the job at any cost”.

Peter Bedford, candidate for Mid Leicestershire, liked a tweet nicknaming Rishi “Mr Flip Flop”, Another tweet he liked called Rishi “irritable, aggressive, bad tempered”, while yet another described him as “NOT PM material”.

Another tweet liked by his account described Sunak as looking “desperate” in the leadership debate.

Sam Holland, the Tory candidate for Dagenham and Rainham, has been scathing towards not just Sunak, but a number of other Conservative politicians.

Holland liked a tweet about Labour calling for an investigation in Sunak’s comments on taking money from deprived urban areas”, and redirecting it towards Tory voting areas.

He also liked a video calling Boris Johnson a “dirty piece of toe rag”, and another video that called Liz Truss a “disgrace”.

Other liked tweets criticised senior Tory figures such as Nadine Dorries, Suella Braveman, Jacob Rees-Mogg, Nadhim Zahawi and Shaun Bailey.