Penny Mordaunt

The Right Honourable
Penny Mordaunt
The Right Honourable Penny Mordaunt
	Official portrait, 2022
Leader of the House of Commons; Lord President of the Council
	In office; 6 September 2022 – 5 July 2024
Prime Minister	Liz Truss; Rishi Sunak
Preceded by	Mark Spencer
Succeeded by	Lucy Powell
Secretary of State for Defence
	In office; 1 May 2019 – 24 July 2019
Prime Minister	Theresa May
Preceded by	Gavin Williamson
Succeeded by	Ben Wallace
Secretary of State for International Development
	In office; 9 November 2017 – 1 May 2019
Prime Minister	Theresa May
Preceded by	Priti Patel
Succeeded by	Rory Stewart
Minister for Women and Equalities
	In office; 30 April 2018 – 24 July 2019
Prime Minister	Theresa May
Preceded by	Amber Rudd
Succeeded by	Amber Rudd
Prime Minister
Junior ministerial offices
Minister of State for Trade Policy
	In office; 16 September 2021 – 6 September 2022
Prime Minister	Boris Johnson
Preceded by	Greg Hands
Succeeded by	Conor Burns
Paymaster General
	In office; 13 February 2020 – 16 September 2021
Prime Minister	Boris Johnson
Preceded by	Oliver Dowden
Succeeded by	Michael Ellis
Minister of State for Disabled People, Work and Health
	In office; 15 July 2016 – 9 November 2017
Prime Minister	Theresa May
Preceded by	Justin Tomlinson
Succeeded by	Sarah Newton
Minister of State for the Armed Forces
	In office; 11 May 2015 – 15 July 2016
Prime Minister	David Cameron
Preceded by	Mark François
Succeeded by	Mike Penning
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
	In office; 14 July 2014 – 11 May 2015
Prime Minister	David Cameron
Preceded by	Nick Boles
Succeeded by	James Wharton
Member of Parliament ; for Portsmouth North
	In office; 6 May 2010 – 30 May 2024
Preceded by	Sarah McCarthy-Fry
Succeeded by	Amanda Martin
Personal details
Born	Penelope Mary Mordaunt; 4 March 1973 (age 51); Torquay, Devon, England
Political party	Conservative
Spouse	Paul Murray (m. 1999; div. 2000)
Alma mater	University of Reading (BA)
Signature
Website	pennymordaunt.com
Military service
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Branch/service	Royal Navy
Years of service	2010–2019
Rank	Acting Sub-Lieutenant; (Honorary Captain)
Unit	Royal Naval Reserve
	Penny Mordaunt's voice Mordaunt comments on her appointment as Secretary of State for International Development; Recorded 10 November 2017

Penelope Mary "Penny" Mordaunt (/ˈmɔːrdənt/; born 4 March 1973) is a former British Conservative politician who served as Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons from 2022 until 2024. She was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Portsmouth North from 2010 to 2024. She ran twice for the Conservative party leadership in July–September and October 2022, losing to Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak respectively. In the 2024 general election, Mordaunt lost her Portsmouth North seat to Labour's Amanda Martin.

Mordaunt read philosophy at the University of Reading, before working in the public relations industry. She held roles under Conservative Party leaders John Major and William Hague, and also worked for George W. Bush's presidential campaigns in 2000 and 2004. Mordaunt was elected to the House of Commons at the 2010 general election. Under the coalition government of David Cameron, she served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Decentralisation from 2014 to 2015. After the 2015 general election, Cameron promoted her to Minister of State for the Armed Forces, the first woman to hold the post. Mordaunt supported Brexit in the 2016 referendum on EU membership. Following Theresa May's appointment as prime minister, Mordaunt was appointed Minister of State for Disabled People, Work and Health. In 2017, following the resignation of Priti Patel, she was appointed Secretary of State for International Development. She also served as Minister for Women and Equalities from 2018 to 2019.

In May 2019, Mordaunt was appointed to the Cabinet position of Secretary of State for Defence, replacing Gavin Williamson, becoming the first woman to hold the post. She served as Defence Secretary for 85 days before returning to the backbenches, having been removed from office by the new prime minister Boris Johnson. In the February 2020 reshuffle, she re-entered government as Paymaster General. In the 2021 reshuffle, she was appointed Minister of State for Trade Policy.

Following Johnson's announcement in July 2022 that he would resign as Leader of the Conservative Party and prime minister, Mordaunt entered the leadership contest to succeed him, but was eliminated in the final round of voting among Conservative MPs and subsequently endorsed Truss. Mordaunt was appointed as Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Council when Truss became prime minister. Following Truss's resignation on 20 October 2022, Mordaunt made a second bid to become Conservative leader and prime minister. She pulled out of the election after being unable to gain the necessary endorsement of 100 MPs, allowing Sunak to become Conservative Leader and prime minister unopposed. Sunak later retained Mordaunt in his cabinet, continuing as Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President, giving her a notable role at the coronation of Charles III and Camilla. In the 2024 general election, Mordaunt was one of many high-profile Conservative members of parliament who lost their seats in Labour’s landslide victory, alongside Liz Truss, Grant Shapps, Jacob Rees-Mogg and Johnny Mercer.^[2]

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