‘It just got better and better’: former councilor Frank Jonas at Mordaunt. Photo: Karen Robinson/The Observer Mordaunt’s sudden rise to bookies’ favorite has shocked many seasoned political observers – and the wider public, who know little about the Portsmouth North MP. But her local supporters and even some of her political rivals in the populous island city that has shaped her political career are not surprised by her emergence as members’ top choice in the race to succeed Boris Johnson. In a suburban semi-detached house in the north of the city, three-time lord mayor and former Conservative councilor Frank Jonas is full of praise for “our girl”, as he likes to call Mordant. Jonas was part of the committee that selected Mordaunt for her first campaign to become MP for the constituency in 2005, which she lost before winning in 2010. [in the meeting] and it just got better and better,” says Jonas in his living room decorated with paintings of British military battles. “She is authentic and that is a rare thing in politics. I hope she becomes prime minister because she doesn’t owe anyone anything – she’s done it all by herself.” Councilor Gerald Vernon-Jackson says, “For the last two and a half years, we’ve just had chaos – and he wouldn’t do that.” Photo: Karen Robinson/The Observer Conservative councilor Scott Payter-Harris, who sits next to Jonas, has no time for those in his party reporting he is unable to work. “[Her rise] may come as a surprise to people outside Portsmouth. It’s no surprise to us – we know how good she is,” he says. “He won a Labor voting seat in 2010 and increased his majority each time. It shows what it can do. She is very approachable. He’s a normal person – he has a very normal background.” Even Portsmouth’s Lib Dem council leader has nice things to say about Mordaunt. In the seagull-filled council offices of the 1970s, Gerald Vernon-Jackson says they get along despite coming from very different political traditions. “We see each other on a regular basis,” she says, munching on M&S scones. “I have her cell number. I will text her if there are things the government needs to do. She is always responsive. She’s very supportive and we don’t argue about most things.” Vernon-Jackson, who texted Mordaunt to wish her well in the leadership election, says he helped secure funding to build a new cruise ship terminal and, along with the city’s Labor MP, succeeded to stop the construction of an unpopular Channel Power Line. He believes that Mordaunt would make an effective Prime Minister. “We disagree politically. She is a right-wing Conservative. I am a Liberal Democrat. She is leaving. I am left over. But he knows how to handle things in a professional manner. The last two-and-a-half years, we’ve just had chaos – and he wouldn’t do that.” CP Quinn, Partnerships Officer for Portsmouth Pride, reached out to LGBTQ+ people upset by Mordaunt’s reversal on trans rights. Photo: Karen Robinson/The Observer However, there are some in Portsmouth who feel Mordown has abandoned socially liberal views in the pursuit of power. In a cafe on the golden-pebbled beach that sweeps around the city’s south end, CP Quinn, the co-ordinator for Portsmouth Pride, which attracted 14,000 people in June, is less than impressed with its recent efforts to distance itself from her former high profile. support for transgender people. “Penny has been a huge supporter of Portsmouth Pride. In 2017 he even brought a trans woman to Pride to speak,” she says. “It’s disappointing to see this shift in trans rights. It’s a political dog whistle.” Local Stop The Sewage co-founder Sarah Shreeve cites Mordaunt’s “self-denial”. Photo: Karen Robinson/The Observer Quinn says Portsmouth Pride have reached out to many disadvantaged people from the LGBTQ+ community since Mordaunt started her campaign. “The community is always hurt the most when someone turns,” he says. “We need to stand up for trans people who feel really shocked and disappointed that a previously supportive MP is acting this way just because of a leadership contest.” Some local sailors and swimmers also question Mordaunt’s honesty. While he called on water companies to pump raw sewage into the sea, last year he voted against an amendment that would have required companies to stop discharges, and this year he voted against measures to penalize businesses when animals die in polluted water. Sarah Shreeve, a primary school teacher who co-founded a local 2,000-strong Stop The Sewage group last year, claims Mordaunt’s approach is worrying as she aspires to run the country: “This level of willingness to toe the party line and The status quo in the face of contradictory evidence from people’s lived experience and from experts is a really worrying trait for someone who wants to be our prime minister.” Back in the harbor battlements, the swirling, chaotic tidal waters of the silvery blue Solent provide an apt metaphor for the lashing out at Tory party and country. A middle-aged woman – perhaps speaking for the entire non-Tory electorate – simply observes: “I have nothing good to say about any of them. They will all be as bad as each other.”
