While everyone gossips and speculates about where (or if) Boris might stand for parliament next year, his deputy, Kit Malthouse, has got in ahead of him.
Last night, a full meeting of North West Hampshire Conservative Association selected the Deputy Mayor as its candidate to succeed Sir George Young, who is stepping down in 2015. Having missed out on Croydon South last Autumn, Malthouse will now hope to repeat Sir George’s 2010 majority of 18,583 votes.
With the Deputy Mayor set to enter the Commons, that’s also another name out of the running to be the next Tory mayoral candidate. Amid all the focus on what Boris will do next, the question remains: who will seek to fill his shoes in City Hall?