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 MinisterLiz Truss
Rishi Sunak
Preceded byMark Spencer
Succeeded byLucy Powell
Secretary of State for Defence
In office
1 May 2019 – 24 July 2019
Prime MinisterTheresa May
Preceded byGavin Williamson
Succeeded byBen Wallace
Secretary of State for International Development
In office
9 November 2017 – 1 May 2019
Prime MinisterTheresa May
Preceded byPriti Patel
Succeeded byRory Stewart
Minister for Women and Equalities
In office
30 April 2018 – 24 July 2019
Prime MinisterTheresa May
Preceded byAmber Rudd
Succeeded byAmber Rudd
Junior ministerial offices
Minister of State for Trade Policy
In office
16 September 2021 – 6 September 2022
Prime MinisterBoris Johnson
Preceded byGreg Hands
Succeeded byConor Burns
Paymaster General
In office
13 February 2020 – 16 September 2021
Prime MinisterBoris Johnson
Preceded byOliver Dowden
Succeeded byMichael Ellis
Minister of State for Disabled People, Work and Health
In office
15 July 2016 – 9 November 2017
Prime MinisterTheresa May
Preceded byJustin Tomlinson
Succeeded bySarah Newton
Minister of State for the Armed Forces
In office
11 May 2015 – 15 July 2016
Prime MinisterDavid Cameron
Preceded byMark François
Succeeded byMike Penning
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
In office
14 July 2014 – 11 May 2015
Prime MinisterDavid Cameron
Preceded byNick Boles
Succeeded byJames Wharton
Member of Parliament
for Portsmouth North
In office
6 May 2010 – 30 May 2024
Preceded bySarah McCarthy-Fry
Succeeded byAmanda Martin
Personal details
Born
Penelope Mary Mordaunt

(1973-03-04) 4 March 1973 (age 51)
Torquay, Devon, England
Political partyConservative
Spouse(s)
Paul Murray
​
​
(m. 1999; div. 2000)​
Alma materUniversity of Reading (BA)
Websitepennymordaunt.com
Military service
Allegiance United Kingdom
Branch/service Royal Navy
Years of service2010–2019
RankActing Sub-Lieutenant
(Honorary Captain)
UnitRoyal Naval Reserve
Penny Mordaunt's voice
Mordaunt comments on her appointment as Secretary of State for International Development
Recorded 10 November 2017

Penelope Mary Mordaunt (/ˈmɔːrdənt/;[1] born 4 March 1973)[2] is a British Conservative politician who was the Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Council. She was the Secretary of State for Defence in 2019, and has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Portsmouth North from 2010 until she lost her seat after the 2024 election.

Mordaunt was Secretary of State for International Development from 2017 to 2019.

In May 2019, Mordaunt was appointed Defence Secretary after Gavin Williamson was fired.[3] She is the first woman to hold this post.

In July 2022, Mordaunt announced her candidacy to replace Boris Johnson as Leader of the Conservative Party in the 2022 leadership election.[4] She was eliminated in the fifth round of voting on 20 July 2022.[5]

After Liz Truss resigned as Prime Minister in October 2022, Mordaunt announced her candidacy for Conservative Party leader again for the October leadership election.[6] She withdrew from the race on 23 October 2022 and supported Rishi Sunak, who won the election unopposed.

References

  1. ↑ Mordaunt, Penny (2009). Penny welcome video blog. YouTube. Event occurs at 0:05. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  2. ↑ Profile, ukwhoswho.com; accessed 8 May 2015.
  3. ↑ Proctor, Charlie (1 May 2019). "The Queen appoints Penny Mordaunt as the first ever female Defence Secretary". royalcentral.co.uk.
  4. ↑ Lyons, Gerald (9 July 2022). "Penny Mordaunt will deliver the new economic vision that Britain needs". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 9 July 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  5. ↑ "Mordaunt crashes out of Tory leadership race leaving Sunak and Truss in the final – video". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
  6. ↑ "Penny Mordaunt announces leadership bid after Liz Truss resigns". Sky News. 2022-10-21. Retrieved 2022-10-21.