Ken Clarke ponders Tory leader race (BBC News)

Former chancellor Ken Clarke has said he is considering whether to run for the Conservative Party leadership.

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But Mr Clarke, who has failed on two previous occasions to become party leader, said he did not feel he was too old for the top job himself at 64.

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BBC political correspondent Gary O'Donoghue said Mr Clarke's pro-European views had hampered efforts to become party leader in the past. But his prospects could be boosted by possible changes to the Tory leadership selection system, which currently sees party members having the final say on two candidates chosen by MPs.

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But John Strafford, chairman of the Campaign for Conservative Democracy, said Mr Clarke did not have the support of the grassroots of the party because of his views on Europe.

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He said ordinary members would be "sick in their stomach" to see Mr Clarke share a platform with Tony Blair to argue for a "yes" vote in the EU constitution referendum

More at:http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4546771.stm

dangerously-electable. Of course I don't think for a second that the little Englanders in the shires would vote for the Europhile Clarke.

Labour has nothing on the tribalism of the Tories. Otherwise we'd be dealing with a UKIP opposition.

The likes of the UK Independence party would have a field day with Clarke as Tory leader. I know quite a few RWers who are more then a little sympathetic to UKIP and Clarke as leader may well push them over the edge.

On the other hand, Clarke would get quite a few more mainstream voters back on board. The problem is that the Tory party would surely go back into 1990's self destruct mode on Europe.

I was worried that Howard's strategy was neutering UKIP too effectively; a nice deep split in the Europhobic right could sew up 2009.

Howard says Clarke is 'too old' to lead the Tory party
By Colin Brown, Deputy Political Editor
16 May 2005


A campaign to stop Ken Clarke by saying he is too old to become the leader of the Tory party has begun as the "beauty parade" of potential candidates turns into a bitter fight.

Michael Howard, 63, was the first to say that Mr Clarke, 64, was too old to succeed him as leader. Michael Portillo also said he "may be too old" and made it clear he would prefer the party to jump a generation to one of the two younger generation of modernising candidates, either David Cameron, 38, or George Osborne, 33.

The "stop Ken" campaign was begun to prevent Mr Clarke splitting the vote among modernisers. They fear David Davis, the favourite from the right, will prove unstoppable if the left is divided. The modernisers respect Mr Clarke's wide appeal with the electorate, but doubt that he can reach out to voters who have deserted the party on the grounds that it is out of touch with modern Britain.

Mr Clarke, an ardent pro-European, could split the party again, if he had to lead the Tories into a campaign for a "no" vote on the European constitution referendum next year.

More at: http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/story.jsp?story=638649

They seem to gravitate towards the unknown for their party leaders. After the disaster of Iain Duncan Smith, who was almost unknown outside the party, they are now talking about a couple of thirty-something men with similarly low profiles. Is this because the party membership end up hating whoever leads them, because they're not Thatcher?

The choices of Major and Hague were "pick the lesser-known candidate" too, but they had at least been cabinet ministers. One thing to consider with politicians - if they're unknown, it's probably because they haven't done anything worthwhile yet. The Tories seem to be getting good at driving away anyone who starts to sound reasonable. I thought their best chance was Theresa May, who sounded like a normal human being, and knew they had an image problem, but she's disappeared; Portillo started living in the 21st century, and was rejected as unsuitable; and Letwin, who at least had, I think, reasonable public recognition, has now been demoted to shadow environment.

I think I'm right in saying that he opted for a lower-profile role. My parents live in West Dorset and couldn't believe he got back.
And on the subject of Clarke - didn't he oppose the war? Imagine if we'd had a Clarke-led Tory opposition that had opposed the war. He'd be PM now.

That perhaps Blair should become leader of the Tory party, and Ken Clarke leader of the Labour Party, and that it would make at least as much sense as Blair leading the Labour Party!

I expect the Tories will choose someone as unintelligent, right-wing, or both as possible. They usually seem to.

I've no doubt that he would get them winning again. He is a really
likeable character, and "I" like him. He's got class, honour and
integrity, AND he's realistic about europe, and many other issues that
makes him really a small "c" conservative.

I hope he runs and turns howards ageism against him... Howard is a
divisive loser, whos already proven that he knows dick about winning
votes... given that the tory seat gains were because of the libdems
and not because of increased tory voting.

Clarke could act as a bridge between the old and the young conservative
new generation, achieving the very thing they want, "listening" to the
public to run as a modern party on the cutting edge.

And really this should include listening to their own personal
responsibility rhetoric about the drugs criminalization and shifting
towards personal responsibility and the empowered enlightened citizen
as the roots of their new transformation.... But as of yet, the
stupid angry old men are still pissing all over the party with their
stinky smell. That francis maude is made party chair to help with the
"big mistake" is indeed typical.

All they're really doing, is ensuring a 4th and 5th term of laobour
mediocrity... and only when the entirity of britain is on the NHS
payroll will it dawn on people, that they've not been the economic
wizards they claimed they were.

by not electing Clarke leader a long time ago...especially as the European issue may become irrelevant as it looks like we're not joining the Euro & the French may vote against the European constitution.